Going for it
by michoct
Summary: This story covers what should happen following the B&W ball. Jason and Liz decide what happens next.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters! Also, this is my first story so please be kind:)

It is the day after the B&W ball and everyone is still recovering and trying to figure out what happened. The ball happened as it did on the show with the exception that Emily has not died and Zacharra escaped. When Jason and Liz were on the ledge Johnny came and saved them, distracting Zacharra.

Chapter 1

So much had happened and changed in the last 24 hours. She left Spoon Island on the second boat, the first boat took Leyla, Sonny, Rick and Luke since they were most in need of medical attention. By the time the first boat arrived to the island Anthony Zacharra was no where to be found. Jason had stayed behind to wait for Mac to arrive to go over what had happened that night. He knew they had much to talk about and told her to call him when she was ready.

Emily knew that she would be needed at the hospital so she rode back with Liz along with Patrick and Robin. The first few minutes of the ride was quiet, everyone still trying to figure out why all this had happened. Liz looked over to Robin and Patrick who were sitting together, Robin leaning into Patrick, resting her head on his shoulder. "You know, if I didn't know any better this night has changed everything between you two."

"I don't know about that, it just makes you realize that life is short. It is unpredictable and so much is out of your control. The way I feel about Patrick has not and will not change but after tonight my perspective has." She looked at Patrick, he was blurred by the tears sitting in her eyes. Robin turned back to Liz and Emily in the seat across from her and continued "After what happened earlier this year at the Metrocourt and tonight, I don't know about you guys but I plan on seriously looking at what I want out of life…" looking back to Patrick "… or who I want."

"I know what I want, I am going to marry my prince the first chance I get." Emily stated decisively.

Liz sat in silence, Robin's words running through her mind. 'Who I want'. That was easy, she knew she wanted him and he wanted her but it was not that easy. Her mind flashed back to the conversation she had with Jason in the stables and the events with Zacharra and Jason on the ledge. It was clear what they both wanted but were they "willing to take the risk". Liz did not realize the last part of her thoughts had escaped her lips.

Looking over to Liz, Emily was about to speak when they pulled up to the docks. They stood on the docks, Patrick took Robin's hand "I'm escorting you home, we don't know where Zacharra is and I am not taking any chances." He turned back to Emily and Liz "Can I help….." Before he could finish his sentence Max walked up.

"Jason called, the phones are working. He asked me to come see you both home safely."

Robin whispered that she would see Emily and Liz at the hospital and Patrick simply nodded to them, they turned and walked away.

"Are you ladies OK?" they both shrugged their shoulders and Liz looked back over the harbor.

"Its been a long night, I think we both need a long shower and a warm bed. Can you take me to the Quartermaines? I need to shower and take a nap before I head to the hospital"

"I have my car here, I will be fine to…" Liz was interrupted by Max.

"No, no, I have been given exact orders that I am to see you both home. You can get your car later, we do not know where Zacharra disappeared to." Liz did not have the energy to fight.

"Fine but we need to stop by my Grams to get the boys before you take me home."

Max dropped Emily off first. Liz got out of the car to hug Emily, she started to walk away but turned back to Liz, "I know you two love each other. The fact that Jake is Jason's is a risk in itself but you must know and I am sure he has told you this, he will risk his life and do everything in his power to protect you, Jake and Cam. I don't think it is the safety issue that has you scared. I think you are afraid of everything but security, You are afraid of what everyone will say, what they will think, what if he hurts you, what if you hurt him. I was scared to take Nicolas back and look at me now. No second thoughts, I just followed my heart. So I am going to stop pushing the issue and give you one piece of advice… If you don't take the chance with this, you and Jason… I don't think either of you can handle it, going back to being just friends… Everything you have with Jason, you will lose him." Liz simply nodded, tears running down her face. Emily pulled her into another hug "I love you."

"I love you too Em, thank you"

Liz climbed back into the car and as they were pulling away from the Quartermaine mansion Max called someone and told them that Emily was home safe and had a guard on her. They went to pick up the boys. After spending a few minutes with the boys Liz let Audrey talk her into leaving the boys there for a few more hours so she could go home and rest. She gave the boys each one more hug and kiss and reluctantly left.

She climbed back into the car, Max was on the phone and Liz caught enough of the conversation to hear that another guard was on their way here too. "The boys are going to stay here for a while so I can rest so you can just take me home, I got a house. It is on…"

"I know where you live." He interrupted.

Liz looked at him puzzled. "How do you know, I just moved there."

"Jason had us check security when he found out you were moving there…" he made an awkward face "… and you've had a guard on you since before Jake was born."

Liz had expected this, although would feel better not knowing because she thought it was weird that someone knew her every move. At the same time it comforted her that no matter what happened she knew Jason would take care of her and the boys. Em was right, she is not scared for the boys safety, she is scared of everything else. Robin was right too, life is unpredictable and there are a lot of things beyond our control. She sat in silence till they pulled onto her street "Max?"

"Yes"

"I know you have talked to Jason, is he still at on the island?" At that exact moment Max's phone rang. Liz caught enough of Max's side of the conversation to know that it was Jason and he was still there. Max hung up the phone as he pulled into Liz's driveway.

"That was Jason, he is just finishing up there."

"Max, I'm going to run inside and pick up a change of clothes, will you take me to the Penthouse instead?"

Max did not reply, he simply nodded. They made it to the penthouse, he helped her inside and offered to stay till Jason got home. "I'll be OK, I'm just going to rest on the couch, I am sure you have plenty of work to do." Max excused himself and when he reached the garage called Jason to inform him of his visitor.

Liz changed into her sweats and plopped down on the couch. Her body began to ache as the exhaustion started to overcome her. Pulling the blanket over her body she caught a familiar scent. Memories of this couch, that night, the night that started everything, and changed everything rushed through her mind. She smiled at the thoughts. She knew what had to be said when he returned and was sure in her decision. Cuddling up in the blanket she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Jason arrived home to find Liz sound asleep on his couch. He knew she had been through hell and did not want to disturb her. He walked to the side of the couch, placed a light kiss on her forehead, sat in the chair and was quickly asleep himself.

Hours later Liz awoke to a light buzzing sound. Looking over she saw Jason sound asleep in the chair. The buzzing sound continued and she remembered she grabbed her phone when she stopped home. It must've been on vibrate. She checked out the caller ID and ran into the next room with it so she did not wake Jason. "Hey Grams… Yes….Yes I am…. Are you sure… Ok, if he wants to stay for another night that's fine, give Cam and Jake a kiss for me and tell them I will be there early tomorrow morning because I miss them…. Ok, I will see you in the morning, bye."

Walking back into the living room Liz stopped next to the chair admiring the calmness of Jason's sleeping form. He was beautiful and she could not resist reaching down and brushing his hair from his face. His eyes flashed open as he took in a deep breath and stretched his aching muscles. "What time is it?"

"I have no idea, late. We slept all day. When did you get home, why didn't you wake me up?"

"I got home not long after you got here and I think you needed sleep as much as I did. Why did you come here? Not that I mind, when Max told me you were here I was glad."

She smiled that he liked the idea of coming home to her "Ummm, well I didn't want to go home to my empty house… and I wanted to see you, talk to you. I think I know, well I have known what I want to do, but I made a decision." She sat on the coffee table in front of Jason.

He looked as though he was mentally preparing himself for her to tell him that she couldn't do it, that she was too scared no matter how much she loved him. He leaned forward and took in a deep breath. "Ok."

She looked into his eyes, although all day she had thought so much about it, she could not find the words. She knew what she wanted and wanted to tell him, to scream that it was him, he was what she wanted, to raise their family together… but now that the moment was here, looking into his eyes, she was speechless. She had to say something. Jason's eyes were heavy with tears, he was nervous, something he was not used to. She had to take control, needed him to know she chose him, finally after all these years it was him… and he did know the moment her lips came crashing into his.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Jason moved to deepen her kiss. He placed his hands in her hair and parting her lips with his. Slowly slipping his tongue to meet hers. At that moment a knock at the door pulled them back to reality. Liz went to pull back but Jason kept his hold on either side of her head and held her to him, resting his forehead on hers he whispered "Damnit".

A second knock came and reluctantly he pulled away, got up and answered the door. Liz got up from the table as soon as she saw Johnny Zacharra was standing on the other side fo the door. "What are you doing here?"

"Umm, I wanted to talk to you about my father."

Liz walked toward the door where the two men were standing "I should go." She looked past Johnny and saw Max and another guard in the hall. "Max will you take me to my car now?"

Jason looked to Max and nodded then turned back to Liz. "Be careful, we will finish our conversation later." The thought sent a shiver throughout Liz's body. Her eyes met his and suddenly they felt like they were the only two in the room. Max, beginning to feel a little uncomfortable, cleared his throat.

They snapped back to reality, Liz gathered her things and walked out the door past Johnny and Jason, turning back once in the hallway her eyes met his one last time and was finally able to say "Bye".

Johnny walked past Jason as he shut the door. "Have your men found my father yet?"

"And if we have?"

"Look Jason, I'm not here to ask you to spare his life. My father is a sick man and sometimes I do think that it would be better if he was not around. I'm worried about Lulu. I don't want her to get hurt because of me."

"Lulu is fine, Spinelli is with her at the hospital visiting her dad. I have a guard on her so she is protected. And your father, no we have not found him yet, but we will… before Trevor and his men. So why are you here, do you wanna work with us, do you want me to believe that you will work against your father and Trevor?"

"Yes."

"For Lulu, a girl that you have known for how long, I don't buy it. Why should I trust you?"

Johnny headed to the door and turned back to Jason, "I don't know how I can convince you but I will say that I know my father better then anyone, whatever my motive is, I know that it is more beneficial for us to work together then fight each other and look for him at the same time. Whether you like it or not, I did save you and Elizabeth. I'll be in touch." Once Johnny left Jason picked up his phone and dialed.

"Stonecold!"

"Spinelli, I need you to get to the Penthouse, now!" with that, the conversation ended, before he could reply Jason flipped his phone closed.

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Liz couldn't wait to get the boys so she picked them up anyway. She opened the door to her house and Cam ran right to his room to play. Jake had fallen asleep during the ride from Grams house so she carried him upstairs and placed him in his crib. Max had taken her to her care then she noticed he had followed her to Grams house then here. When she pulled up she saw another care sitting in front, Max got out of his car and walked up to the other car, said a few words to the man in it and got back into his car and drove away.

Coming downstairs and sitting on the couch, she thought back to everything that happened with Jason. She sat there for what seemed like hours, suddenly panic set in. Lucky! He knows, what was she going to do. She hurt him, she hurt Jason, things got so out of hand. She found herself wondering where Lucky was. She felt like she needed to talk to him, he was angry when he found out but Jason and Sam were there, she needed to talk to him without Sam yelling in his ear. She reached for her cell phone and dialed Lucky's number. "Damnit, voicemail" she heard the beep. "Lucky, its Elizabeth, I know you hate me but I think we need to talk, alone. I need to explain everything to you. Please call me when you get this." She got up and went upstairs to find Cam sound asleep surrounded by train tracks. She picked him up off the floor, moved him to the bed, she gave him a kiss on his forehead and turned to walk out of the room. She stopped and turned on his nightlight. Walking back to her room she decided a nice long shower was what she needed. She stood under the shower for what felt like an hour. Finally gathering the energy to wash her hair and body. She wrapped herself in her robe and flopped on her bed. She turned on the TV but before she could decide on what to watch she fell asleep.

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Jason took a quick shower then sat on the phone. He talked to Max who told him everything is good with Liz and that she was home safe. Sonny called him when he got home from the hospital, he filled Sonny in on everything and Sonny agreed that trusting Johnny could be a mistake. Sonny agreed to rest for the night and they would meet at the coffeehouse in the morning. He had called a few of his men to get the status on the hunt for Zacharra but they had no leads. Finally the door flung open.

"Stonecold, my esteemed apologies, the blonde one wanted to…"

Lulu appeared from behind and interrupted "Sorry Jason, I was hungry so we stopped at Kelly's."

"Its ok, how's Luke?"

"Better… he's going to need to take it easy for a while. I need a shower and clean clothes, I'm going to go upstairs." Lulu turned and walked up the stirs, slowly. It was obvious that she needed a nap too.

"Spinelli I need you to find all you can on Johnny Zacharra. I need to know everything you can find on him. Then I need you to get on the hunt for Anthony Zacharra. Check bank records, surveillance cameras, anything you can. The longer we wait the harder it will be to find him."

"I will commence immediately Stonecold."

"I will be back later, call me if you find anything important." Jason grabbed his leather jacket and left.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Luke had made it through surgery and Monica said that everything went flawlessly. Lucky sat in the chair at his fathers side. Monica told him to go home and get some rest because Luke would be out for the night. He needed his father now, needed to talk to him. Father, up till today he was a father. His son was taken from him. The tears welled up in his eyes. It was all a lie, his marriage… his son. How could she do this to him. At that moment the sadness and grief turned to anger. He felt his body beginning to tremble thinking about what she had done to him. He got up and left the room. He walked over to Sam who was sitting in the waiting area. " I need to get out of here, I need to think."

"Want me to come with you, I don't want to leave you alone."

"I don't need to be babysat Sam" he snapped. "Sorry, I don't mean to take it out on you, I just need to be alone. I'll call you later." He turned and walked away. Turning out of the hospital he knew exactly where to go that would help him cope and there was nothing anyone could do to stop him.

He looked at his phone when it chirped with a voice mail notification. He listened to the message 3 times before finally turning the phone off and throwing it on the floor of his car. A few turns later he parked his car. He stared at the sign and after a brief moment of hesitation walked in. "Coleman, gimme a whiskey… you know what, just gimme the whole bottle and a glass."

A few hours later the bottle was empty and he was ready to take her up on that conversation.

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Liz was woken from an sound sleep to a loud pounding. She was still in her robe and the TV was flashing light in her eyes. When she heard the sound again she jumped out of bed and ran down the hallway and down the steps so that it would not wake the boys up. She opened the door. "Lucky"

"I got your message, you wanna talk." He stumbled past her and in the door and turned back to her, "Lets talk."

As soon as he walked past her she could smell the alcohol. She began to shake and grasped the sides of her robe, pulling it tight around her. "Have you been drinking, that's not going to make anything go away."

"Oh… go to hell, yooouuuu have any right to... to… tell me what to do."

Liz looked outside and saw the guard was on the phone, she assumed he was calling Jason. She close the door and walked over towards Lucky. "Look I don't want to fight, I just want the chance to tell you my side of the situation, without anyone around to distort anything or spew lies at you."

"Your side, would that be the truth, or can yoouuu even t-tell the difference?"

"This right here, this is why I didn't tell you. So you didn't turn to pills but look at yourself Lucky, you are trashed. I'm sure if you had a handful of pills right now you would eat them too."

His voice was beginning to elevate "Are you going to leccc-ture me or tell me your _'reason'_?" He reached out and picked up a small radio that must've been Cam's.

"Look Lucky, before everything happened, before the pills, before Maxie, any of it, I wanted nothing more then to be with you for the rest of my life. But, then it all happened, that changed everything. That night, the night of the blackout changed everything. I guess I was in denial, we both were. When I found out that I was pregnant, you went to rehab for '_our_' baby. I just couldn't.."

He interrupted her "SO YOU LIED. YOU LET ME THINK YOU WERE PREGNANT WITH MY CHILD." He was slowly walking toward her "BUT YOU LIED FOR M-ME," she nodded "YOU ARE STILL LYING! YOU LIED FOR YOURSELF, S-SO IT WOULDN'T BE YOU'RE FAULT IF I RELAPSED. YOU DIDN'T WANT TO FEEL GUILT, YOU SELFISH BITCH. HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME!" He turned and threw the radio, shattering a vase as it flew across the room. Then he turned back and grabbed her arm. "HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO MMME!"

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Jason had stopped to check on Carly then went over to the Quartermaine's to check on Emily. She was not there however, she had gone to the hospital. He was about to head to the hospital when he received a call from George, Liz's guard. Apparently Liz had a visitor and it was one of the visitors Jason asked to be informed of. 5 minutes later he pulled up in front of her house and heard a crash inside the house. He ran up and into the house. As he opened the door he saw Lucky grabbing Liz's arm and screaming in her face. "LUCKY!"

Lucky turned to see Jason and laughed. "HERE TO SAVE THE DAY AG-GAIN MORGAN" He released her arm and backed away.

"Lucky I suggest you leave… NOW" Jason watched as Lucky backed away from her stumbling over the couch and falling onto the floor.

"He's drunk Jase" Liz pointed out. Jason wanted nothing more then to beat the living crap out of Lucky for scaring Elizabeth but the look in her eyes pleaded for him not to.

"Get out RIGHT NOW Lucky" Jason yelled as he grabbed him by the arm, pulled him off the floor and toward the door.

Lucky stopped at the doorway and looked torward Liz and calmly said "Fucking lying bitch!" the instant the words left his mouth Jason's fist met his chin. He fell back into the door, unconscoius, more from the alcohol then the punch. Jason wanted to kill him but he controlled himself and stopped at the one punch. The last thing he needed was to be arrested for assaulting a police officer. George was already on the porch and grabbed Lucky's arm to pull him up.

"Take him home, I'll stay here and watch things." Jason ordered. Once they were gone jason closed and locked the door. He turned around to see Liz on the ground claning up the glass from the shattered vase.

"Are you OK? What was he doing here?"

She took in a couple deep breaths. She did not want to cry. "I am fine. I had called him earlier tonight to talk to him without Sam barking in his ear. I didn't know he would show up here… drunk." She continued to pick up the glass and cursed out loud. Jason noticed a piece of glass had pierced her fingertip. He grabbed her hand "I'm fine, its only a little cut." She pulled her hand back and wiped her finger on her pink robe leaving a small red mark in the fabric. He found himself staring at the red mark then his eyes began to wander across her small body kneeling on the floor. The tie on her robe had started to come loose and he realized that she was wearing nothing under her robe. He grabbed her hand and kissed the finger that was cut.

"Stop, let me do this" he pleaded. A distant wimper interrupted them.

"Looks like you are cleaning it up, I have to go feed Jake." She got up and disappeared into the kitchen and quickly reappeared with a bottle only to disappear just as quickly up the stairs. He cleaned up the rest of the glass and swept up the small pieces with a broom he found in the kitchen closet. Returning to the livingroom he looked around. She had just moved in but everything was put away and clean. He was impressed. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his cell phone ringing.

"Morgan"

"Hey, he is home. I don't think he is going to remember anything tomorrow, he was pretty gone."

"Ok, I'll stay here for the night, have Max here in the morning. We will work out the schedule then."

"Ok boss"

Jason flipped his phone closed and flipped it right back open.

"Stonecold"

"Spinelli do you have anything yet?"

"With much regret I must say very little. But have no fear I will not relent. My travels through cyberspace will come up victorious."

"Call me right away if you find anything." He clicked his phone shut and heard a faint knocking from upstairs. He ran up the steps to find Liz. He came to Jakes room and found her sitting in a rocker with Jake in her arms.

"Is… Is everything ok?" Looking around Jakes room his heart began pounding. His son's room was amazing. It had an animal theme. The walls were painted pale yellow with lions, monkeys and giraffes handpainted.

"Yea, I didn't want to yell and wake Cam up so I banged my feel on the floor" she laughed quietly. "I thought that maybe you would like to take over and feek Jake." She slowly raised herself from the rocker and motioned for Jason to sit. He immediately complied and she handed Jake to him. His eyes were closed but Jason could tell he was awake.

"Does he eat ok? Sleep ok?"

"Yea, as good as any other baby. He doesn't cry too much, he is very patient, I think he gets that from you." Jason listened intently as she went on talking about his habits and schedule. She watched him as he rocked slightly in the chair. She could see that his eyes were watering. After a few more minutes of silence she decided to give him time alone with his son. She got up and kissed Jake and Jason both on the forehead and made her way downstairs.

He knew that Liz had left the room but he was so focused on Jake that he was not sure if she said where she was going. He had never had this feeling before. Tears dripped from his eyes as he thought about the fact that he can come over tomorrow and feed Jake and the day after that, whenever he wants. Jakes breathing slowed as did the sucking motion on the bottle. He was sleeping. Jason watched him sleep for a little while before slowly getting up, careful not to wake him. He gently kissed his forehead whispered "I love you" and place him in his crib.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Spinelli?"

His head was hanging hanging on the back of the couch. He was sound asleep and when he breathed a low growl came from his throat. "Spinelli?" His head flung forward as his eye flipped open. He paused for a moment to take in his surroundings. He hadn't slept much in the last couple days.

"Blonde one. I must have fallen into a slumber while searching cyberspace for the vanished evil doer."

"Well I just came down to get something to eat but I am going back to bed. I thought I would wake you up so you could go sleep in your room." Lulu said.

"That is very gracious of you but Stonecold gave me stringent tasks of the utmost importance. I am afraid its imporance is greater then my current need for slumber."

"Can I help you with anything? We have worked toge…."

Spinelli interrupted before she could finish, "No, I think it is paramount that you remain unacquainted with the demons that seem to be overtaking Port Charles. My slumber has recharged my senses and I will be fine but I must thank you for your thoughtfulness."

"Whatever Spinelli, good night." Once she left the room he went back to seaching for the information Jason had asked him for.

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Jason made his way down the hallway and down the steps to find an empty livingroom. He quickly sensed that she was in the kitchen when he heard a cabinet shut. He leaned against the doorway and watched her move around the kitchen. She was cooking? He didn't think she cooked. She appeared to be making some sort of chicken and vegetables with rice and it actually smelled pretty good. He was in the doorway admiring her for a few minutes till she finally turned and saw him in the doorway, his eyes watching her attentively. She had changed into jeans and a camisole. She had a thin button up shirt over her camisole that was lightly sheer. He could not believe how beautiful she was, the mother of his child, the woman he loves.

"How long have you been there watching me?"

"I just got here."

"Liar, you know I can tell when you are lying." She said playfully.

He laughed "A few minutes."

"Are you hungry? When I came downstairs I realized that I hadn't eaten really at all today."

"Yea, I didn't realize I was hungry till I smelled food." He walked over to the stove and looked under the lid. He nodded his head. "It looks good."

She motioned for him to the table as she grabbed two plates from the cabinet. She turned to the stove and turned the dial to turn the heat off, piled food onto both plates and placed them on the table. She went over to the fridge "I don't have much… water, apple juice or formula, oh I have a couple beers."

"A beer sounds good."

"Yes, it does." She returned to the table taking the seat across from him. They ate in silence, occasionally catching glances at each other. They each noticed that their feet were touching under the table and both enjoyed that closeness, as small as it was. Once they were done eating Liz got up and took the plates to the sink.

Jason followed with her with his eyes and asked "Thank you for dinner." He got up and walked over to where she was standing by the sink. "Lemme help, you cooked, I want to help you clean up." She turned around to find him standing right behind her, inches away. She looked up, caught his eyes and was speachless for a minute.

When her words came to her mouth finally, keeper her eyes on his she replied "You know what would be a big help?"

"What?" he asked. She pointed across the kitchen. His eyes followed and he chuckled. "You want me to take out your trash?"

Laughing she turned back around "Yea, it's cold out!"

Placing a hand on her waist he leaned in and said "Anything you want." He placed a soft kiss on her neck and turned to do his task. By the time he returned she had everything cleaned up and was standing next to the table sipping her beer. He walked over, took the last sip from his and placed the empty bottle next to the sink "Umm, George called me earlier…"

"Who's George?"

He laughed "The guard… he called me after he dropped Lucky off. I told him he didn't have to come back tonight because I am going to stay here." She shifted and backed away from the table so she could lean back against the counter. Her legs had started shaking and had to balance herself so he could not see it. He instantly noticed that she was getting nervous. They had not been together since that night and he did not want to rush her. "I… I'm going to sleep on your couch." She nodded and quickly finished her beer.

She walked over and put her bottle next to Jason's on the counter and went to walk out of the kitchen. He followed her to the livingroom where she sat on the couch and he stood next to the couch. "Jason, come sit. I think we need to talking about everything." She was getting nervous again. She silently prayed that she would be able to speak this time and not get so overwhelmed. He walked around and sat next to her on the end of the couch. She shifted so she was sitting sideways and pulled her leg up in front of her. "First things first, I want you to know that you can see Jake whenever you want. It was wrong what I did, I hurt all of us and now you have missed months of seeing your son." He did not want to argue about whether she was wrong or not, he just nodded his head. He turned his body so that he could place his arm across the back of the couch, brushing by her shoulder. "As for us…" she took in a deep breath and was about to continue when he spoke first.

"Have you changed your mind?" he asked.

"No, have you?" she snapped back.

He shook his head no "No, but what do we do now, do we date… I'm not sure what the next step needs to be."

"I don't know, maybe we should go out on a date, is that weird? Maybe we shouldn't call it a date, we should just go out. We can call it alone time or something." She laughed, more out of nervousness. He sensed her nervousness, took his hand resting on the back of the couch and gently touched the exposed skin on her neck, running it up to cup her cheek. She leaned into it, closed her eyes and sighed. He shifted to the side a little and pulled on her arm with his other hand. Nudging her toward him. She complied, scooted over, draped her legs across his lap, he lifted his arm and she cuddled into his chest.

"Alone time sounds like fun." He said as he ran his hand over her knees while the other rested on her waist. She wanted his hands on her. Images and memories started flooding her mind from the night of the blackout. His stong arms and skilled hands. Her hand was on his chest and she could feel that his heart was pounding as fast as hers. She wondered if he was thinking about the same thing. She lifted her head up so that she could see his face. He was already looking at her and their eyes met, both unable to look away.

He was slowly inching his face closer to hers when she finally whispered "I love you". Before he could reply she closed the distance and kissed him. Her one hand moving to hold the side of his neck while the other wrapped around to grab the back of the couch so she could swing her leg around. He felt her shifting but was lost in her lips. The soft kisses she was placing on his, were driving him crazy. He took control of the kiss and deepened it, pushing his tongue into her mouth. He went to grab her waist and at that moment he realized that in all her shifting, she was now straddling him. She let out a sigh when a hand went to her waist and slid under the back of her shirt finding her skin while the other moved to her neck and he trailed kisses down her cheek to her neck then pushed her sheer shirt over a little so he could kiss her bare shoulder. He followed the same path in reverse, trailing kisses till his lips were back on hers. She kissed him forcefully, catching him off guard by taking control of the kiss.

Her hands went to the few buttons that were on her shirt and shrugged it off never taking her lips from his. They both needed to cath their breath, neither wanting to break the kiss to breathe. His hand moved back under her camisole, needing to touch her skin as he had earlier. She pulled back and tugged at the bottom of his shirt. He removed his hands and lips for a split second so that she could pull the shirt over his head. She tossed the shirt on the floor, his lips slammed back into hers, his hands quickly returned to her back, pulling her shirt with them as he slid his hands up and down her back and she ground her hip down causing him to let out a soft moan. He was lost, he wanted this and knew she did too. She trailed kisses down his neck to his chest. She kissed and licked then suddenly her lips and hands were gone. He opened his eyes to find her looking around. Then he heard it.

"Jason, where is your phone, I hear it ringing."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!" he growled as she got up to retrieve it from the table by the door. She returned to the couch where he was still sitting. "Thank you" Taking the phone from her hand, he looked at the caller ID and sighed just as it stopped ringing. Grabbing her hand and pulling her back into his lap he whispered "One more minute, I'll call him back in one minute". A smile came to her lips as he grabbed her neck pulling her into another kiss. He ran his tongue along her top and bottom lip before it gained entry. Her hands trailed a path up his chest to his neck then moved to his head as she grabbed his hair and tugged lightly, pulling his head back from the kiss, she kissed his chin and moved to his neck. They both moaned as he pulled on her camisole. She pulled back so he could pull it over her head. Before he could, once again his phone began to ring. He sighed, released her shirt and it slid back down her body.

"I think you should get it, he will just keep calling." She gave him another quick kiss and went to move off his lap but he held her there.

He flipped the phone open, placing his free hand on the outside of her thigh "Morgan" he said as he began running his hand up and down her thigh, gently rubbing and massaging it.

"Stonecold, the jackel has uncovered information of the most supreme magnitude."

Liz ran her hands up and down his chest, her touch made his skin burn and she finally leaned down to place light kissed where her hands had just been, soothing it almost as if she knew it was driving him crazy.

"It appears that the denizen of darkness remains in town. I have observed him via surveillance footage. It was hard to circumvent the security but the jackel was able to hack in."

"Where Spinelli?" Elizabeth instantly felt the change in his mood and pulled back. She heard Jake crying upstairs. She stood up and pointed to Jake's room, letting Jason know that she was going up to take care of him. She made her way upstairs and picked Jake up from his crib. Liz knew that he was not hungry and his diaper was dry so she figured it was gas or he just wanted to be held. She made her way back to her room and settled on her bed with Jake laying on her chest. After a few minutes his cry turned to a whimper and a few minutes later the whimper was gone and his breathing steadied… as did Liz's. They were both sound asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Jason hung up with Spinelli and made a few calls. He sent men to the area where Spinelli had seen footage of Zacharra. He could not leave Elizabeth so he had to count on his men to follow through with their task and locate Zacharra before his own guys did. They had strict orders not to hurt him, just follow him once he is located and report his whereabouts. He made his way upstairs to Jake's room to find it empty. He peaked into Cam's room to find just Cam sound asleep in his small train bed. The next door was Liz's, he stood in the doorway and took in the sight in front of him. Liz was sound asleep on her back with Jake laying on top, his head resting on her chest. He stood in the doorway and watched them unable to believe that this was his life. How had he gotten so lucky? Lucky… he would have to deal with that tomorrow. He would marry Liz right away if she would say yes, but he knew she would not want to rush. They will take things slow, although tonight wasn't exactly taking things slow. If Spinelli hadn't called he would not have been able to stop. He stood in the doorway a few more minutes before Jake shifted on Liz causing her to stir. She peeked an eye open and looked down at Jake when she caught Jason in her sight. "Hey, I guess I fell asleep."

"Yea, it's been a long couple days. Want me to put Jake back in his crib?"

"Please, but come back after. Stay in here with me, don't sleep on the couch." She asked as he reached down and scooped Jake into his arms. He took Jake into his room and stood rocking him for a few minutes before placing him in his crib. Returning to Liz's room he found her laying on her side facing the middle of the bed. She had changed while he put Jake in his crib. She was now wearing a small tank top and pajama pants. Unsure of exactly what he should do, he followed his instinct, took his shirt off again and removed his shoes and pants. He wore just a pair of navy blue boxer briefs as he climbed into bed next to her. She instantly moved to his side, wrapped a leg over his, placed her head on his chest and hand on his stomach.

His hand came up and covered hers on his stomach, he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her palm, returning it back to its original position on his stomach. She lifted her head and leaned up to place a soft kiss on his lips. It was quick but there was so much sensation behind it that it made Jason's eyes close and Liz's toes tingle. He wanted to flip her over and climb on top of her but knew that he needed to wait. After a few minutes Jason opened his eyes and said "Goodnight Elizabeth."

"Night."

"I love you"

"I know, I love you too."

After a few minutes Jason felt Liz's breathing slow and he knew she was sleeping. He followed shortly thereafter.

--------

Across town Zacharra stood on the sidewalk staring up at a tall building. "The penthouse huh?" he said outloud. He looked at the sign that said Harborview towers Nobody was around him to hear, he continued "Women are worthless, they lie, you would lie to my son. I will get you before you do you little tramp". He smiled and walked away.

--------

"Owwwwwww" Lucky groaned as he opened his eyes. The sun was glaring through the window of his livingroom. The light did not have a positive effect today as it usually does for him.

"Lucky, what the hell happened last night?" Sam asked as she walked in the front door.

Lucky shifted so he was sitting on the couch and rested his head in his palm. His eyes were still half shut, his head felt like it was being squeezed in a vice and his stomach felt like it was in one of this machines they use to mix a can of paint at the hardware store. "I don't know." He simply stated.

"You are hung over, your obviously got into a fight… did you take any pills?

"I told you, I don't rememeber." He ran his hand over his jaw which did not feel broken but he obviously took a pretty good punch. "I remember leaving the hospital and going to Jake's for a few drinks, after that, nothing." His thoughts went to the voice mail that he listened to, he had a feeling he went to Liz's but that could have been a dream. He let the thoughts leave his head because it was starting to hurt more. "Whatever happened, I need to get some asprin and lay back down."

"Lucky you and I both know tha turning to alcohol does not solve anything. Shit, I slept with Rick when I got drunk. You should have come to me. I want to help you get through this."

Lucky cuckled, but not a good chuckle, he was obviously annoyed by her comment "You want to help me? Why? The secret is out, there is nothing more that you can hold over Jason's head, I know that Jake is not mine. It is obvious that screwing me does not bother him so what is the point. Your plan did not work, it only brought Jason and Liz closer. You used me, but hell… I used you too."

"Yes, I used you, but I still care about you… you are a good man, I can see that."

"Whatever, just leave me alone. Leave!"

"Lucky, just let me help you." She stepped toward the couch.

"LEAVE!" He startled her and she turned and ran out the door.

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Liz woke to Jake's cry. The cry stopped just as she reached her hand out to find herself alone in the bed. The baby monitor was on her nightstand next to the bed and she could hear shuffling in Jake's room. She could hear Jason muttering a light "Shhh" and assumed he was rocking in the chair. Reaching to the nightstand, she turned the monitor volume up to listen a while longer. Things were going to be rough, she knew it, but Elizabeth was finally ready. Hearing a slight whimper she knew that Jake was probably hungry. Making her way to the door, she found jason walking out of Jake's room at the same time she walked out of her room. He was still holding Jake. "Hey."

Liz replied, "Good morning, lemme go get a bottle. Do you want to feed him?" He nodded. "I'll be right back." She ran down the stairs and quickly returned with the bottle. Jason had made his way back to the rocking chair. She stopped for a moment and took him in. He was perfect, his large arms holding the small child so delicately. She felt her face warm up and knew she was blushing. Handing him the bottle she leaned down and gave Jake a kiss. She moved to give Jason a kiss on his cheek but he turned his face so that she met his mouth for a quick kiss. "I'll put on a pot of coffee then hop in the shower. He usually falls back to sleep for another hour after his morning bottle." She stated as she walked out of the room.

After taking a quick shower she stood in front of the mirror and noticed that the mark on her cheek from Sam had started fading. It could definitely be unnoticeable under makeup. She exited the bathroom to grab a set of scrubs for work only to find the view of Jason bent over. She watched from the doorway as he picked his t-shirt up and pulled it on. "Have I ever told you how hot you are?" she teased.

He turned to find her standing in the doorway in nothing but a towel. He took in the sight before him. She was beautiful. He took in a deep breath, walked over to her and whispered "And you are beautiful, beyond words." He lightly kissed her bare shoulder, moved to kiss the other then her neck behind her ear before whispering "You're perfect". She felt herself bracing herself against the doorway to remain standing as her face flushed. He flashed her a smirk and walked past her. She turned to watch him walk down the hall and disappear down the steps. 'Wow' she thought, he had such a way to tie her into knots. It was only fair though because she had done the same thing to him last night. She wanted to follow him downstairs, push him back on the couch and finish what they started but she had to work. 'Later' she promised herself.

After peeking in on Cameron and Jake she made her way downstairs. Jason was sitting at the kitchen table drinking his cup of coffee. "I have to head out, are you okay with the guards?" he asked nervously.

"After what happened the last couple days, yea, I am. I realize that there is danger beyond what you do. Zacharra was not after you or Sonny, he was after Lulu. It had nothing to do with you. Trevor is another story but I accept that it is something I need from now on." Liz stated as she fixed her coffee. She turned to the table and sat with him. "I think we should go out on a non-date, or what did we call it, alone time."

"I think we should too. I want to stop to check on Emily today so I will see if she can babysit Cam and Jake one night."

She caught his gance and stared into his stunning blue eyes, "Perfect." She was pulled from the moment by the sound of a creak on the steps. She stood from the table and walked in the other room to find Cameron rubbing his eyes half asleep in the livingroom. "Morning sweetheart." He walked over to her and stood in front of her waiting to be picked up.

"I'm hungry mommy" he said as she lifted him to her arms.

Jason exited the kitchen "Hi Cam, do you remember me?"

"Yea, you are mommy's friend." He layed his head on Liz's shoulder out of shyness.

Jason did not want to cause any confusion for Cameron so he figured he should head out. He had a lot to do today anyway. "I'm going to leave," looking at Cam, "maybe I can come back so we can play trains later, I love Chuggin Charlie."

Cam's head popped up and a huge smile came to his face, "You like trains, me too. I'll see you later." Jason met Elizabeth's gaze and wanted to lean in to kiss her but settled for a wink.

"I'll call you later." Jason said to her.

"Okay, bye" she said as she watched him walk out the door.

Thanks for all the positive feedback! I will try to update this as much as possible, hopefully get a chapter up at least every day or two.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Sorry I'm late" Elizabeth blurted as she walked up to the nurses station.

"Nurse Webber, I understand that with everything that has happened in the last couple days you are busy, but please remember, you still hav a job to do. When you are not here the patients are the ones that are suffering." Epiphany scolded.

"I know, I am sorry." Liz picked up the pile of charts sitting on the counter and got right to work.

"Mrs. Schwartz needs her meds, D.A. Lansing needs his bandages changed and Mr. Spencer needs his IV changed." Epiphany listed. Liz sighed, she was not looking forward to work today.

"I will get right on them." She said as she walked away.

Liz figured that she would do her hardest task first and take care of Luke's IV. Luckily he was sleeping and she was able to get in and out of his room without confrontation. She then tended to Mrs. Schwartz followed by Rick. She entered Rick's room to find him awake. "Hey, I need to change your bandages."

"It must be my lucky day, isn't there anyone else that can do it? I am sure that you are completely capable but considering that I am laying here because of your _friend_, the gun toting hitman…" Liz interrupted before he could finish.

"Rick, I am your nurse on shift. Get over yourself, or should I say your hate for Jason and Sonny. I can't believe there was a time that I actually wanted to spend my life with you." He laughed at her comment and moved the blanket and his gown aside so she could tend to his wound. "If you can just keep your mouth shut for 5 minutes I will make it quick."

He was quiet till she finished. She turned to leave the room. "Liz?"

"What Rick?"

"I just wanted to say that you are very good at your job, but then again, you do hang around Morgan a lot so you have had a lot of practice tending to gun wounds and knife wounds."

Grabbing the door handle and opening the door she turned back to Rick "I am going to let you in in a little secret, Jason is more then my friend and I thank god that this town has a D.A. as crooked and stupid as you are because otherwise the man I love could be in jail." She walked out the door with a smirk on her face to find Emily standing outside Ricks room.

"Did I just hear you right Liz?" Emily said with a devilish grin on her face. "… or did you just say that to get under Rick's skin?"

They started walking back to the nurses station. "No, I am taking your advice and diving right in the deep end. I know it is going to be a fight but I have to follow my heart and Em, it happens to be your brother that has it."

"I am so happy for you two."

"Thanks, but I have to get back to work, I was late and Epiphany is not happy with me today."

"Ok, maybe this weekend we can get together to start working on wedding plans, Nicolas wants a quick wedding. He is meeting with Patrick today so as long as it goes well I was thinking sometime next month."

"I'm so happy for you Em." Liz gave her a hug before turning and quickly walking behnd the counter and grabbing the pile of charts.

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Jason entered the Coffee Shop and the guard opened the door to the office for him to step through. Sonny sat at his desk on the phone. "I don't care, I want that shipment here tomorrow." He slammed the phone on the receiver.

"Sonny, aren't you supposed to be home recovering?" Jason asked.

Sonny leaned back in his chair and wiped his hand over his forehead, "Are you my boss now? Kate already is on my case, do I need you too. I can't just sit home when I feel fine. Now what have you found on Zacharra?"

"Nothing yet, we had a sighting but have not found him yet. I have all available resources looking for him. I will not let him get away. But, I do not think he was the one that attacked Leticia, I think that was Trevor. Zacharra is too far gone to attack us for our territory, his motivation is Johnny and his late wife. I have a guard on Lulu, well Logan, but he has clear orders to stay with her when she is not at the Penthouse." Jason paced around the room. "Trevor is being watched, if he slips up we will get him."

"Good, with Alcazar's property available we need to be proactive. I have a meeting with Skye tomorrow. The last thing we need is Trevor getting his hands on it." Jason's phone rang interrupting Sonny's thoughts.

He looked at the caller ID "Morgan."

"Hey Jase, do you have a minute?"

He looked up and Sonny waved him from the room, "We'll finish later."

"Yea Em, what's up?" Jason replied as he walked out the door.

"Well, I just got off my shift and wanted to know how my brother is doing."

"That's funny, I was going to call and ask you the same thing. I also have a favor to ask you."

"Whatever you need, what is it?"

"Do you think you can babysit Cam and Jake one of the next couple of nights? Me and Liz want to, umm, go out." Jason heard her giggle. "Em?"

"Of course, I was actually going to offer. I saw Liz earlier and she told me that she was finally going for it, well actually she told Rick but that is besides the point."

"What? She said what?" Jason asked, his voice slightly raised.

"Don't worry about it Jase, I think Rick was giving her a hard time so she wanted to get under his skin. So she rubbed her feelings for you in his face." It actually put a little smirk on his face knowing that it probably did get under Rick's skin. "I am actually not doing anything tonight, I can watch them at her place or I can bring them to play with Spencer."

"Well I prefer that you stay at Liz's place tonight, I don't know who knows about Jake yet, who Lucky has told, so just to be safe."

"Okay, it's a date, I will be there at 7:30ish. I'll see you then."

"Thanks Em… bye."

Jason hung up the phone as he climbed into his SUV. On his drive home he started getting nervous. He had no idea what to do or where they should go. For the whole drive he racked his brain, he had never been nervous about spending time with someone like this. He did not want the generic dinner date. He finally flipped up his phone and dialed a number.

"You again, whats up?" she answered.

"Em, I need help!"

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Lulu wiped down the counter while staring out the window. 'Is he going to stand out there in the cold all night?' She asked herself. She knew that Logan was 'assigned' to her but he did not have to stand outside the door like he was a bouncer at a club. She walked out from behind the counter and caught his glance. She waved for him to come inside.

"You know, you don't have to stand outside all night, you can hang in here. It is slow so you'd be keeping me company. I guess everyone is getting ready for Thanksgiving tomorrow, I don't know." Lulu rambled.

"Well, I am working so I really won't be much company. This is one assignment that Jason has given me that I don't want to mess up, I care about you and Zacharra is a nut job." He said as he stood right inside the door constantly looking out the windows.

"Whatever, you can stand right there if you want but then I definitely won't get any more customers because you are blocking the doorway." She chuckled when her moved back leaving exactly enough room for the door to open. "Mike told me I can close early if it is slow so it looks like I won't be here too long anyway. Jason said that he has something going on tonight at the Penthouse so I guess I will wander the streets all night."

"What do you mean he has something going on at the Penthouse?"

"I don't know, he said he had an important meeting and cannot be disturbed." Lulu replied. "Spinelli said he is going to stay at Nadines tonight, making a point to tell me he's sleeping on her couch."

"Well you can crash on my couch if you would like." Logan offered nervously.

Lulu got a huge grin on her face and said "OK!"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Elizabeth was beyond nervous. Jason had called her when she was on her way home from the hospital and told her that he would pick her up at 7:30. It was 6:00 when he called, that only gave her an hour and a half. She had no clue what to wear since he did not tell her what they were doing or where they were going. He caught her so off guard when he called that she forgot to ask. She called Emily and asked her to come early to help her get ready. She was down to 30 minutes when Em knocked on her door.

Liz opened the door still wearing her robe, holding Jake who was fussing "Thank god you are here!"

Emily immediately reched her arms out for Jake. "How is my boy, Auntie Em missed you." She bent her head down and kissed his forehead. "Wow, you look nervous Liz."

"Thanks, is it that obvious?" Emily giggled. "I have no clue where we are going or wht we are doing… so I don't know what to wear. I've known him for the better part of a decade so why the hell am I so freaking nervous." Liz rambled.

"Ok calm down. Dress casually, jeans are fine."

"So you know what we are doing?"

"Maybe I know, maybe I don't but I have a feeling that you should dress casual." She flashed Liz a devilish grin. "Oh, who is the guy outside?"

"My guard." Liz laughed hearing herself, she felt silly having a guard but knew it was one hundred percent necessary.

"He looks kinda like the Mr Clean guy." They both laughed hysterically. "Go finish getting ready, I am going to spend time with Jake here. Where is Cam?"

"He is up in his room watching Chuggin' Charlie." Liz stated as she ran up the steps. She returned to her room and picked out a pair of jeans. Her new dilemma was what shirt to wear. She tried on four different shirts before finally deciding on a low cut v-neck baby blue sweater. She went to her closet and put on her favorite pair of black heels. Looking at the clock she groaned to herself, "10 minutes". Quickly pinning her hair up she made her way into Cam's room.

"Cam baby, Aunt Em is here." He immediately jumped up and ran downstairs, Liz following quickly.

"Aunt Emmie." He ran into Emily's arms.

"Well hey there handsome, are you going to hang out with me tonight?"

"Yep, mommy says that you are babysipping me and Jake."

"Babysitting" Liz corrected him. "I'm going to go finish upstairs, I'll be right back." Emily nodded and Liz heard her talking to Cam about trains as she went back to her room. Liz quickly applied a minimal amount of make-up. She didn't like to wear too much. She took one last look at herself and shrugged mumbling to herself "gonna have to do". As she made her way back downstairs she found Jason sitting on the couch with Emily whispering. "Am I interrupting?"

Jason got up off the couch, walked up to her and gave her a kiss on her forehead. He whispered "You look beautiful" in her ear. She blushed and looked at Emily who was watching them like a proud parent.

"You kids behave, I've got this under control. Don't rush home." Emily urged.

Liz threw her a nervous grin and gave her a hug. She kneeled down in front of Cameron "You be good for Aunt Emily. I love you."

"I love you too mommy." Jason walked over to Cameron and put his hand out. Cam gave him five. "Bye Jaysen."

Liz smiled proudly. She was so happy that Cam liked Jason and was looking forward to their relationship evolving further. Jason leaned and gave Jake and Emily both kisses on their cheek, followed a second later by Liz. "Call me if you need anything." Liz said as Jason grabbed her hand and guided her out the door.

They made their way to Jason's SUV where he opened the door for her. "Wow, are we sure this is not a date?" she joked.

"I don't know, from what Em was saying when you were upstairs, one would think that you have never been alone with a guy before." He teased back as he got in the driver's seat.

"WHAT? What did she say to you? I'll kill her!" Liz exclaimed.

Jason could not hold in his laugh. "She said that you were flustered when she go there."

"Go ahead, laugh at me, everyone make fun of Lizzie. I haven't done this in a while. I don't know where we are going so I didn't know how to dress." She shot back.

He pulled out of her driveway and drove in silence for a minute, trying to decide what to say. He didn't want her to be angry. "You are dressed perfect, you are beautiful no matter what you wear, jeans, a fancy gown, scrubs, sweats, it doesn't matter. Em is just being Em, she is happy for us." He reached over and grabbed her hand in his.

"You always know just what to say. Although I have not told you have handsome you look yet. You do, although you look handsome no matter what, t-shirt, leather jacket, no shirt." She giggled. "So… where are we going anyway."

"My place" he replied.

She laughed nervously, "Are we skipping right to dessert?"

He squeezed her hand. "Aren't we the comedian. No, I figured that we can have more privacy if we had dinner there. I don't think either of us feel like dealing with anyone else tonight."

"You're right, good thinking. Last thing I need right now is Carly hounding us at the Metrocourt." She commented as he pulled into the parking garage and parked next to a motorcycle. She sighed when she recognized that it was his. He noticed her reaction as he opened her door so she could get out.

"I wanted to come pick you up on it but I didn't want you to be too cold."

"Next time." She said as she grabbed his hand and they walked toward the elevator.

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Lulu stood inside Kelly's staring out the window. Logan had run to use the bathroom and insisted she lock the door while he was gone since there were no customers. She wondered where Anthony Zacharra was. Would he ever leave her alone? She knew that she could trust Logan and Johnny to protect her but she still had a nervous feeling in her stomach.

Continuing to stare out the window she noticed someone walking toward the restaurant. Logan was not back yet so she moved behind the wall so they would just think it was closed. The person peeked in the window and tried to open the door, unsuccessfully. She leaned her head out so she could see who it was and froze when she saw it was Anthony Zacharra. Before she could scream Logan appeared from the back, drawing his gun at the sight of Zacharra through the window. Zacharra held up his pointer finger and wiggled it from side to side. Logan could see him mouthing "That's a no no". Suddenly he was gone. Logan ran to the door and unlocked it, peeking out to see if he was gone before closing it an locking it again.

"Lulu, are you ok?" she nodded "I need to call Jason, I can't leave you to run after him, and I am not about to take you with me." He grabbed his phone and dialed, after a few rings he said "Damn, his voicemail." He dialed again this time he got a voice on the other end. "Max, I just saw Zacharra at Kelly's…… Yes…… I'm with Lulu now…… no, I tried to call Jason but he did not answer……. Okay, let me know if you find him" he hung up the phone.

"Looks like I'm done work for the night."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Jason opened the door to the Penthouse and moved to the side to allow Liz entry. She was shocked. She took in the scene before her. There were so many candles lit. They illuminated the room so well that Jason did not turn on the lights. There was a fire burning and she could smell of the food cooking in the kitchen. She walked in and sat on the arm of the couch. Jason followed, his hands in his pockets. "God Jason, the candlelight, its… incredible." He stood in front of her and she leaned forward wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, although I must say, Emily helped a little."

"Of course she did, she sure is excited about us. Did you cook?"

He nodded "Nothing fancy, just your basic pasta. By the time I got back here to get ready, I didn't have time to run to the store for anything so I threw together something I could with what I already had here."

"Well it smells delicious." She smiled placing her chin on his chest as she looked up and into his eyes. He wanted to lean down and capture her mouth but he knew that would be the end of the evening, he would not be able to stop. She deserved a romantic night, brining her to his place and taking her right to his room, as good as it sounded, is not the night he had planned. "What are you thinking about?" she asked.

He shot her a devilish smile "Nothing, lets eat." She knew his mind was as deep in the gutter as hers. He grabbed her hand and led her to the table. "Be right back." A few minutes later he appeared from the kitchen with 2 plates. Placing them on the table he asked "Beer or water, sorry, I don't have much to choose from here either."

"I'll have a beer and a water, if you don't mind." He reappeared with two beers and a bottle of water and took his seat across from her at the table. "This looks really good." She commented as she took a bite. "Tastes good too."

"Thanks, I make pasta a lot because it is pretty quick. Sonny taught me a lot when it comes to cooking."

Dinner went pretty quick. They talked about Jake, her work, her conversation with Rick and just general small talk. When they finished he cleared the plates and they went back and sat on the couch. He sat diagonally leaning on the arm with a leg on the couch and the other on the floor. She sat between his legs and leaned back into him, resting her head on his shoulder.

They sat in silence for what felt like hours even though it was probably more like a half hour. Liz looked down at his hand resting on top of hers. Her thoughts drifted to the pain and fear that his hands have caused. She finally broke the silence. "You know, a lot of people think that you are a monster. Of course I know you are not. It's like there are two sides of you. I can't help but sit here and think about it... but I see something. You are the most kind and selfless person I know." She picked up his hand in hers and continued. "I know that the people you have hurt or worse then hurt were not good people. They did not have souls. That is what separates you from people like Zacharra, he does it for fun. I know that the only time you would cause anyone else pain would be because they have threatened to cause you pain or someone you know."

"Are you sure you want this? My life, the danger?" he asked.

"Yes, I do. I have also realized that you can protect us from your enemies. Think about it. You have successfully protected Michael and Morgan. And yes, I do realize that Michael was kidnapped, but not by an ememy of yours or Sonny's... it was AJ. Look at the guys that came up to me in the park. That was Sam. It is not you that is dangerous, it's this damn town." She let out a little chuckle. "I have complete faith in you." she turned her head back so she could look into his eyes and flashed him a smile. She settled her head back on his shoulder and stared into the fire. A few minutes later she again broke the silence. "So, I picked Cam and Jake up from the daycare at the hospital today..."

"Uh huh" he said knowing what was coming next.

"Well Carol, she is the woman that runs it, but apparently you know that though because you paid my bill through the end of the year." she said sarcastically.

"You can't expect me to sit by and not help. You know me better then that. It's just money."

"I can do this on my own Jason." She was not angry that he did it, actually she was expecting him to do it, however this was going to lead to something else that she had discovered a couple days ago, for that she will not be as forgiving.

"I know you can. There is no doubt in my mind that you can handle everything and make it look easy. The thing is... I want to help, I am going to help whether you like it or not. What is the point in having all my money if it is just going to sit in the bank."

"I understand that you want to help me Jason. Jake is your son and if you want to help with the daycare costs then I am fine with that. On the other hand, there is something I stumbled upon the other day and wanted to ask you about it."

"You can ask me anything you want." Jason said.

"Well, the house I am living in, I did not buy it, I am only renting it." Jason had a feeling that he knew what was coming and knew he was in trouble for this one. "Em had gone with me to look at it. I had only been looking for a day when the realtor called me with this _amazing_ find, and it was already furnished. I couldn't believe how cheap it was. At first I thought it was a mistake but the realtor assured me that the monthly rent amount was correct." Her voice had a sarcastic tone as she continued. "So, I went to make my rent payment the other day and went to the lease agreement to find the owners address. I did not recognize the name of the company that owned it but the address looked familiar."

"Oh really." He asked.

She sat up and turned to face him, "I can't believe you. You sneak… you went behind my back using some bogus company name. The freaking address is Diane's address. I guess you didn't think I knew where her office was since you paid her bills for my divorce, well I do." She hollered at him angrily.

He opened his mouth to speak but she interrupted before he could. In a calm mommy voice she said "It's not that you bought or owned my house, whatever happened. It's that you tricked me, that is why I am angry."

"I didn't think you would let me help you. I wanted you to have a house and a yard for the boys, to be happy. I love you." He got a grin on his face hoping that the declaration of his love would help the situation.

She got a little smile on her lips and shook her head "You aren't getting off that easy, but I will put this conversation off till later. The only other thing I will say about it tonight is that you'd better not ever trick me like that again."

He put his hands up in surrender and said "I promise" then moved his hands to the back of her neck and pulled her into a light kiss, followed by another, then another. It continued for a couple minutes till he finally released her neck "We should get outta here so Em can get home."

That completely caught Liz off guard. She nodded to him as she got up off the couch. He noticed her disappointment as she made her way around the room blowing out candles. He stood from the couch and grabbed her arm as she tried to walk past him. He pulled her into a hug. His mouth was by her ear and she felt his tongue lightly trace her earlobe, instantly causing her body to feel numb, before he whispered "We will finish our date back at your house." Her face flushed, she felt his breath, words and tongue all the way to her knees that were beginning to shake.

She pulled back from his embrace and collected herself. "You mean your house?" she shot him a devious smile.

He shook his head and let out a groan as he reached for her hand, "Let's go."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

FYI… this chapter is rated M/NC-17.

Jason and Liz walked in the house to find Emil sound asleep on the couch with Jake sleeping in her arms and Cameron curled up next to her sleeping. Jason instantly walked over and carefully scooped Cameron into his arms. He quickly disappeared up the steps. He placed him in his bed and pulled the covers over him. He had noticed a night light was on the night before so he clicked it on and left the room. Returning to the livingroom Liz was holding Jake in her arms rocking back and forth. She had awoken Emily who was now putting on her shoes. "Did you guys have a good night?" Emily asked.

"Yea, it was nice and rather relaxing." Elizabeth replied.

"Good, I know that's what you both needed considering the excitement of the past few days. The boys were perfect, anytime you two want I am more then happy to watch them."

"Thanks." Jason and Elizabeth said in unison.

Emily gave them each hugs and left.

"Want me to take Jake?" Jason asked.

"It's almost time for his 11:00 feeding, do you want to do it?" she asked.

"Yea, but show me how to get the bottle together so I know how to do it." She handed Jake over to him, he began to stir in Jason's arms almost as if he knew they were getting ready to feed him. He followed her to the kitchen to watch as she mixed his formula and heated the bottle in the microwave for 18 seconds. She took it out and gave it a little shake before handing it to him. "Looks easy enough." He bowed his head and brushed his lips against hers before turning and heading up to Jakes room. Ten minutes later Jake was again sound asleep and had taken all but one ounce of the bottle. Jason decided that it was probably good enough, placed him in his crib and left the room to go looking for Elizabeth.

He searched the house for her with no luck. The only room left that he had not checked was her room. Her door was half closed and he whispered her name as he anxiously pushed the door open. He was taken by surprise at the view before him. She had taken it upon herself to light a few candles on the nightstands on either side of the bed. Her body was in the middle of the bed and she wore only her light pink bra and matching color thong. His eyes looked over her body, taking in every perfect curve. Her skin glowed in the candlelight.

The instant Jason had walked in the room Liz could see the nervousness and anticipation on his face. Her eyes locked on his and followed his movements as he made his way to the side of the bed. It seemed to take him an hour to walk across the room. When he reached the bed he slowly lowered himself to sit on the edge. He leaned in and touched a hand to her cheek then trailed his fingertips down her neck to her shoulders and down her arm. Not taking her eyes off his she sat up on her knees and scooted to the edge of the bed where he sat. His hand moved to sit on her thigh when he leaned in and captured her mouth with his. His other hand went to her neck as her hands found the bottom of his shirt.

She pulled the shirt over his head and his lips quickly slammed back into hers. His tongue forcing its way past her lips. His kiss was so urgent and hungry that they both forgot to breath. Jason finally pulled back from her and stood next to the bed. He moved his hands to the button of his jeans, Liz quickly pushed them away and replaced them with hers. She slowly pulled on the snap and lowered his zipper before hooking her fingers in his waistband and lowering them to the ground. He stepped out of them and climbed on the bed next to her kneeling as she was. She wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him to her. She kissed a hot trail across his chest then her head tilted up to meet his lips again. She ran her tongue along his bottom lip then lightly bit down, tugging on it. He groaned and moved his mouth to her neck where his mouth and tongue went to work as he reached behind her back and unhooked her bra. She slid the straps down her arms and threw it aside. He instantly found a nipple and took it in his mouth causing her to let out a soft moan. He licked and teased one nipple before moving to the other. Her hands moved to his head and hold him there. She was in heaven and did not want him to stop.

His hand moved to her shoulders and he nudged her back till she was laying on the bed, him hovering over her. His mouth returned to hers. Her hands moved to the waistband of his boxer briefs. She pushed them down, releasing him only for her to quickly bring her hand around to wrap around his erection. He was instantly paralyzed, unable to pull away. He moaned into her mouth before breaking the kiss. Their eyes locked as she slowly began to pump. His hips arched toward her but it only lasted a few seconds before he grabbed her wrists and pinned them over her head with one of his hands. He knew that if she had continued he would lose it.

Still holding her arms over her head he moved to lay on his side next to her. He took his free hand and quickly pulled the last article of clothing from her body. His fingers trailed up and down the inside of her thighs. Suddenly they were inside her and his mouth and tongue met back up with hers. His mouth drank her moans as her hips rocked against his hand. His tongue flicked her upper lip in rhythm. She quickly found herself close to the edge. He felt so good and she could not control herself. Her breathing became shallow and her back arched as she let out a loud moan. He continued pumping his fingers as his thumb teased her bud. Eventually her back relaxed and he kissed her softly. He removed his hand from her wrists above her head and removed his other from between her legs.

He moved his body over hers and she wrapped her arms around his waist. Their eyes locked and he slowly pushed himself into her. She cried out when he pulled almost all the way out and again slowly pushed back in. He continued to drive her crazy repeating the long slow movement, she wrapped her legs around his waist and suddenly the long slow movement turned into hard fast thrusts and they both grunted with each thrust. Her nails dug into his back as she arched her neck up so her mouth could reach his. Their tongues met in the middle tangling with each other. One of his hands moved to hold her leg that was wrapped around his waist. He felt her beginning to tighten around him and her body began to quiver. His thrust became quicker as he felt her orgasm coming to its height. Suddenly he felt his body tremble and he was coming with her, pounding himself deeper into her till he collapsed on top of her out of breath.

She held him in place on top of her, his body still connected with hers. After resting for a few minutes she finally said "Wow, we need to do that again." He dipped his head and kissed her softly as he flipped them over so she was now laying on top of him. She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed.

He reached around her and pulled the covers over them. They laid there for a few minutes before Jason said "I love you Elizabeth".

She replied "I love you too" before falling asleep.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Lulu rolled on her side and brushed the hair from her face. She had been tossing and turning for over an hour unable to fall asleep. The run in with Zacharra earlier was bothering her more then she let on to Logan. When the got up to is apartment he asked if she was scared but she just brushed it off. She was scared but was not the type of girl to admit she was afraid of something or someone. There was nothing she can do about it, Zacharra would not let up till she was dead. She finally got up off the couch and went to the kitchen to get a drink from the fridge. Turning to return to the couch with her bottle of water she came face to face with Logan and he scared the daylights out of her causing her to drop her bottle of water. "Shit, you scared the crap out of me Logan."

"Sorry, I heard you get up. Are you ok?" he asked.

"Yea, I, umm, can't sleep."

"Zacharra?"

She rolled her eyes, "No, no… the couch is hard and not very comfortable."

"Oh, if you want I can sleep in there and you can have my bed." He offered.

"I see your motive here, you just want me back in your bed."

"No, I'll sleep on the couch Lulu."

"I know, I'm just messing with you. We are, I guess, dating again, trying again, whatever you wanna call it, so it's ok if you sleep next to me. You aren't going to get any yet though." She joked.

"I'm fine with that." He bent over, picked up her water and grabbed her hand, "Come on." She went over to his bed and laid on her side facing away from him and he lay facing her. He slid so that only inches separated them. She sensed that he was close and reached behind her pulling on his arm to wrap around her. He complied and they leaned into each other, spooning. She felt safe in his arms and felt herself drifting into sleep. Within minutes they were both sound asleep.

---------

Lucky stepped out of the elevator and instantly got a look from Epiphany. 'Doesn't she ever go home?' he thought.

"Mr. Spencer, visiting hours are long over. You can come back tomorrow morning after 9am." She insisted.

"What are you going to do, arrest me? I will only be a few minutes, maybe this is official police business."

Epiphany let out a sigh, "Being that tomorrow, or shall I say today is Thanksgiving I will allow you to visit with your father… for five minutes. Make it quick." Lucky gave her a slight smile and walked toward his fathers room. He pushed open the door to find his father wide awake. "Hey, I had a feeling you wouldn't be sleeping."

"How can I, I'm cooped up in a shitty hospital bed. What brings you here so late cowboy?"

"I need to talk to you about something. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Monica said I should be getting out of here tomorrow sometime. Tracey has really been good to me, I am lucky she has been by my side through this." Lucky shot Luke a surprised look. "I know, surprising isn't it. But you didn't come here to talk about me, what can I do for you?"

Lucky sucked in a deep breath "Everything is falling apart. My marriage, my family, I think I need to get out of Port Charles for a while."

"What? Why, just because your marriage with Elizabeth failed. Believe me, I know, running isn't going to make it go away. Eventually you will have to come back and old wounds will still be there."

"No dad, there is more to it then that… Eliz… Liz lied to me about Jake. He is not my son, he is Jason's." Lucky said as he sat in the chair at Luke's bedside. "I can't sit here and watch Jason raise what should have been my son. I can't look at Liz without feeling betrayed."

"Wow, I didn't see that coming. How long has she known Jason is the father? During Jason's trial she testified that Jason was not the father."

"She lied, she has known all along. The only reason they told me is because Sam threatened to tell me. Elizabeth said that she kept it from me because she was afraid that I would relapse but I know it is just because she was afraid… because of Jason's business. She married me knowing all of this, she has been in love with Morgan the whole time. They are everywhere, I cannot face them right now, they took my son from me." Lucky admitted.

"Lucky, I cannot even begin to imagine what you are going through. I wish your mother was here, she'd know just what to say or do. I understand your need to leave though. I invented the concept. You do what you gotta do to get through this, if you need anything I'll be here, just hopefully not in this stuffy hospital."

"Can you explain everything to Lulu for me. She is staying at Jason's and I just cannot go over there right now." Luke nodded. "Tell her I will call her." Lucky got up and walked toward the door "Happy Thanksgiving dad."

"Same to you cowboy, don't be away too long." Lucky walked out of Luke's room, thanked Epiphany again as he walked past the nurses station. He had to talk to one more person before leaving town. Lucky pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me. Did I wake you?" 

"No, is everything ok?" the voice asked.

"I'm leaving town for a while. I just wanted to let you know." 

"Lucky do you think running is the answer?" 

"I honestly don't know. Maybe I will be back in a couple days, but if I don't leave I am afraid of what I will do. I tried going to a meeting but telling strangers my problems, that I lost my son, my wife, my family and how I want to eat pills is not going to solve my problem."

"Well you can come here, stay here, we can help you get through this."

"No offense but sitting with You, Emily and Spencer, watching the happy family is not what I need right now. I thank you for the offer but my mind is made up."

"I am here if you need anything. Call me and let me know where and how you are."

"Ok Nicolas, thank you. Take care."

"Bye." Lucky hit end and threw his phone on the passenger seat. He started his car, pulled out of the parking lot and drove out of town.

---------

Thank you again for all the positive feedback. I am a fan fic addict and finally decided to write one. I never thought I would enjoy it so much.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Liz was standing in the doorway to her room, it was dawn and the light was starting to peek through the window. She had been standing there watching Jason sleep for what felt like hours. She was mesmerized by his perfect body. When he started stirring and rolled over onto his stomach he had stretched his arms up under the pillow, causing his back muscles to flex. She began chewing on her bottom lip as he rolled back over to his back and his eyes squinted open. "Good morning" he mumbled.

"Morning... I started some coffee." She said as she walked toward the bed, climbing back into the position she had fallen asleep in the night before, laying on his chest.

He brought his arms around her and sighed. "I'll have a cup but I should leave before Cam gets up. We don't need him to be confused any more then he already is."

She looked at him, rested her chin on his chest and ran her hand through his hair "You are amazing."

They laid together for a few minutes till she moved to get up. He felt her leaning to roll off him but he tightened his grasp on her waist. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"I was going to ummm, get a cup of coffee, shower, I have laundry to do, make breakfast… not necessarily in that order, but that's the gist of it… oh wait, it's Thanksgiving, crap, I never got a turkey! I suck!"

Jason laughed. "No you don't. I think it is pretty understandable considering what we have all been through this week."

"Do you have plans with Sonny, Carly, Emily or anyone for dinner?" He shook his head no. "Good, you can come here and we can order take out… since I don't have a turkey, not that I can cook hat great anyway." She moved to get up again but this time Jason moved his hands and grabbed her thighs before she could completely get off him. She shot him a devilish smile and sat up. Her knees were on either side of his hips and she was straddling him. She trailed her fingertips across his finely sculpted chest, watching him twitch beneath her nails.

"I don't want to let go." He said sighing.

Liz leaned forward and kissed his neck and trailed kisses to his chin. She lightly kissed his lips then brushed her tongue over his lower lip. His hands flew up, grabbed the back of her head and kissed her hard. She let out a soft moan when his tongue pushed into her mouth. She was amazed at how good it felt to be kissed by Jason. She could never live without it again and could not believe she went so many years without kissing him every chance she got. Finally, breathless, she had to pull back for air and said "I don't wanna let you go either… but".

"I need to get outta here before Cameron wakes up." He said and she nodded.

Five minutes later they were both dressed and they made their way to the kitchen for coffee. He sat at the table with his cup and rather then sitting across the table or next to him she chose to sit on his lap. "So… are you going to come over for dinner?"

"Ok"

"Good" she replied and another five minutes later he was pulling out of the driveway.

---------

"Logan, wake up." Lulu demanded as she pushed on his shoulders. "Come on, I'm picking my dad up from GH and if I am late the step monster is going to kill me because she wanted to do it." She pushed on his shoulders again rocking them.

"Ok ok, I'll get up." He said as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He yawned and stretched, he could feel her watching him from the other side of the bed. He turned his head real quick to catch her and he did. He smiled at her "I'm gonna take a shower first, gimme 15 minutes."

"Ok."

When they arrived at the hospital Luke was already dressed and had completed all of his discharge paperwork. "Anxious to get home to the step monster dad?" Lulu asked.

"Anywhere is better then this prison, even if it is the dysfunction of the Quatermaine mansion." They exited the room and Luke stopped, turning to Lulu. "Why must you continue to fraternize with the young Baldwin?" Luke asked as he shot Logan a look that could kill.

"Dad, you know that I am going to see him if you like it or not. He is not like his father."

"That's right sir, he has never been my father and I'm not going to let him start now." Logan interjected.

"You still have that Baldwin DNA though." Luke said.

"Dad, leave it alone. He will be with me all day today. He is kind of my bodyguard right now." Lulu said as they walked toward the elevators.

"WHAT!"

"Stop it dad, you'll give yourself another heart attack. Jason felt that I should be protected since the reason Zacharra showed up at the Ball was to kill me. So technically he is on duty, whenever I am outside of the Penthouse he will be with me until Zacharra is caught… and yes, he is coming to dinner with me tonight."

"Great another thing to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, spending it with a Baldwin." Luke said as the elevators closed.

They were about to pull up to the house when Lulu asked, "Is Lucky eating dinner with us tonight or will he be spending Thanksgiving with Cam and Jake?"

"Well, I need to talk to you about Lucky… he left town for a little while."

Logan's eyes popped up to the rear view mirror to see Lulu's reaction, which was not good "What! Why, is everything ok?"

"Well apparently things are pretty bad right now with Elizabeth and she kept something from him." Luke stated.

Lulu got butterflies in her stomach "He knows?"

"You knew?" Luke asked.

"Umm, yea kinda."

"And when did you find out Leslie Lu?" Luke asked in an agitated voice.

"Before Jake was born. I promised not to say anything for both Lucky's sake and Jakes safety."

"Well let's get in the house. We will finish this conversation later when young Baldwin is absent."

A few minutes later Lulu and Logan were back on the road. "Is everything ok?" Logan asked.

"Well, I betrayed my brother by keeping the most important secret of his life from him. Then when he found out, he left town like my father does. When anything bad happens, they run." Lulu put her face in her hands and shook her head.

Logan reached over, pulled one of her hand from her face and held it in his "I don't really know what is going on here but I can figure it out by the conversations I have overheard. I'm not really involved in the situation but if you want to talk about it I am here."

"Thanks, can you just take me back to the Penthouse? I'll stay there for a while so you can go get some things done or whatever you need to do. You can just pick me up before dinner."

"Ok." He said giving her hand a light squeeze.

---------

Jason had returned to the Penthouse and had been sitting with Spinelli going thru everything he found on Zacharra, which was not much. "Just keep looking Spinelli, I know you can find him."

"Well thank you Stonecold, your faith in the Jackal is most humbling." Spinelli said proudly.

Jason's cell rang, he flipped his phone open and stood from the chair "Morgan."

"It's Johnny, we need to meet. I got some information and do not want to discuss it over the phone. I am near your place, are you there?"

"Yea."

"Okay, I'll be there in ten minutes."

Jason flipped his phone close as Lulu walked in the door. "Jason, what the hell happened with Lucky? He knows?"

Jason ran his hand through his hair and leaned on the arm of the couch "Yes, we told him at the ball."

"I can't believe this. I let everyone talk me into keeping this secret and now it's out. Does Lucky know that I knew?" Jason shrugged his shoulders "Lucky must be devastated only I can't talk to him because he left town."

Jason's head popped up, "What?"

"Yea, my dad said that he couldn't handle it so in true Spencer fashion, he ran away."

"Lulu, it's complicated and I am sorry but this really does not concern you." Jason said as he stood and walked toward her.

"It is my business, he is my brother."

Jason's voice raised slightly "And Jake is my son!" He took a deep breath. "I'm not going to get into this right now." Lulu huffed and walked up the steps.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

"No Em, I'm not cooking, I'm picking the food up from Kelly's in an hour." Liz said into the phone with a giggle. She was folding clothes when she decided to give Emily a call to thank her for babysitting.

"Not that you are a bad cook, you just need more experience." Emily laughed back. "So, just you, Jason and the boys huh?"

"Yes cupid, we are having dinner together. I want Cam to get to know Jason since he is Jake's father and will be around more now." Emily got a big smile and Liz sensed it through the phone. "I know you are excited about this Em but we are going to take this slow." She cut herself off thinking about how her night ended. That wasn't exactly taking things slow.

"What?" Emily asked.

"Nothing. So when are we going to start planning this wedding?"

"Way to change the subject. Well Nicholas met with Patrick and Robin the other day. Apparently Robin found this experimental drug that they are trying. They cannot find anything physically wrong. So far everything seems ok, except for the fact that it makes him act like a hormonal teenager. I don't know what the drug is but damn is he horny." she laughed.

"That is not a bad thing." Liz joked, "As long as he is better."

"Yea, I have a good feeling. What are you doing tomorrow? I was thinking about seeing if my mom was available. Maybe we can do brunch and start planning." Emily asked.

"That sounds good. I have off tomorrow so I am clear all day." Liz piled the stacks of clothes she had just folded into the basket sitting on the table. "I better get going so I can get the boys together and pick up dinner before Jason gets here. I will see you tomorrow, say 11?"

"Okay, I love you Liz, Happy Thanksgiving."

"I love you too Em, Happy Thanksgiving." They both hung up the phone. Liz picked up the basket and made her way upstairs to get the boys.

---------

Max opened the door to the Penthouse and let Johnny in. Spinelli was sitting on the couch with his laptop on the coffee table. At the sight of Johnny walking in he nodded to him and turned his laptop so Johnny could not see his 'super-cyber detective skills'.

"Can we talk alone?" Johnny asked Jason and looked toward Spinelli.

"Actually Spinelli can probably help so any information you can give him would be good." Jason said.

"Fine, whatever. Listen, there is trouble beyond my father… Trevor." Johnny said.

"I know this already."

"Well the problem is that Trevor has been running my fathers businesses and pretty much keeping him prisoner. My fathers guards have kept him on a very tight leash. Now my father is so crazy that he didn't question it anymore. Well now Trevor has a new plan. He called the guards back and everyone that was looking for my father. His theory is that my father will end up either dead or in jail." Jason made a face as if he was saying that it made sense. "He has one other obstacle… me. He cannot take everything over completely with me around. I have gotten word that Trevor ordered a hit on me."

"Who told you this?" Jason asked.

"One of the guards told me. Without me in the way he will have control of everything, all of my fathers holdings."

"So are you asking me for protection?"

"No, I can protect myself. I don't really know what I am asking, I guess I am no sure what to do. Like I said before, we should work together." Johnny suggested. "All I can assure you is that in the end I will do everything in my power to pull all negotiations and threats from Port Charles."

Jason nodded, "I have all my resources looking for him and we are keeping a close watch on Lansing."

As they were talking Spinelli continued plugging away on his laptop. He finally found a good lead. "Stonecold!"

Jason walked over and looked at the computer screen then back across the room to Johnny. "We got him."

Fifteen minutes later Jason was leaving Sonny's house. He had gone over there to explain the situation and plan to Sonny. Sonny was apprehensive about trusting Johnny but agreed that they had no choice. It was all in Johnny's hands and would hopefully hear from him tomorrow with good news.

---------

"Mommy, is daddy coming to dinner?" Cameron asked as they unpacked the bags from Kelly's. "I miss daddy, when is he coming home?"

Liz's stomach turned. She knew this question was coming but hoped it would not be today. She knelt down to him "Cam, remember when I told you that mommy and daddy were not going to live together anymore?" Cameron nodded. "You know what, how about we call daddy. He will probably love to talk to you. Maybe you can see him tomorrow."

Cameron got a huge smile, "Yeah!"

Liz picked up the phone and dialed Lucky's number. After a few rings it went to voicemail. She decided not to leave a message. "Cam, honey, daddy didn't answer his phone baby. We can try calling him again later ok?" Liz bent down and gave Cameron a hug, "Now why don't you go in the other room and play for a while before dinner." He nodded and left to go play. She saw the sadness in his eyes and it broke her heart. The fact that Lucky had not been spending time with Cameron proved that he never accepted him as his child. Maybe he was better off cutting ties with Lucky altogether rather seeing him from time to time. She was comforted by the fact that Jason really seemed to accept Cameron even though he was not his son, and he wanted a relationship with Cameron. She knew that no matter what happened between her and Jason he would always be there for Cameron.

The table was set for dinner and Liz had began heating up the food that Mike made when she heard Jason come in the house. A few minutes later she walked out of the kitchen and saw Jason sitting on the floor with Cam playing trains. He looked up at Liz standing in the doorway and said "Something smells good."

She smiled, "Dinner is in five minutes. Cam go wash your hands."She looked across the room to see that Jake was sound asleep in his swing before turning back to the kitchen. Jason followed Cameron to the bathroom and helped him by turning on the water and squirting some soap in his hands. Jason also washed his own.

Cameron handed Jason the washcloth after his hands were dry and said "Thank you."

"You're welcome buddy. Now lets go eat some of that yummy food mommy cooked."

"Mommy didn't cook it silly, Mr. Mike did." Cameron said as he turned and ran to the kitchen. Jason stood in the bathroom for a minute with a grin on his face before making his way to the kitchen.

Liz was sitting at the table making a plate for Cameron. Jason sat across the table from her "Looks good."

"Thanks, although I must admit, I didn't cook it."

"I know." Jason replied locking his eyes on hers. She raised her eyebrow. "Cam told me."

"You little sneak, you were waiting to see if I tried to pass this off as my cooking." She picked up her roll and threw it at him as he raised his hands in surrender. "You know that I could never lie to you." She looked toward the Livingroom where Jake was sleeping. "At least not anymore" she said honestly, an apologetic look on her face.

"I know." He said in a calming voice.

She mouthed "I love you" and felt his calf rub hers under the table. She cleared her throat then looked back to Cameron who had apparently snuck a train into the dinner table and was running it along the edge. "Here you go honey." She put his plate down in front of him. "And remember, if you eat all your dinner you can have dessert."

Throughout dinner they talked a lot about trains and games that Cameron likes to play. Jason now knew the plot line to half a dozen Chuggin Charlie movies. After dinner Liz sent Jason and Cameron into the Livingroom to play so she could clean up. Jason had offered to clean but Liz insisted, she wanted them to get to know each other. She was standing at the sink washing the dishes when Jason returned to the kitchen with Jake who was fussing.

"Umm, is it time for his bottle. I am not sure what cry this is." He asked.

"Yep, that is his hungry cry." Jason quickly made up a bottle as she had shown him the night before and placed it in the microwave. He walked up behind Liz at the sink and shifted Jake in his arm so he was on his side. Jason wrapped his free arm around her waist and bent his head down to kiss her neck. He quickly learned that her neck was her sensitive spot because her breathing instantly changed and she dropped the plate she was cleaning. He quickly grabbed her arm, turned her around and pushed her against the counter. His mouth moved right back to her neck where he feasted on it. Liz could barely stand up it felt so good. Her arms reached back and held on to the counter to keep her balance. His mouth finally left her neck and found her mouth. He placed a few light kisses before taking her bottom lip between his teeth. Jake let out another fuss causing Jason to sigh and pull back from the kiss. He walked over and grabbed the bottle from the microwave. On his way out of the kitchen he walked back past a still motionless Elizabeth and gave her one more peck on the lips. Once he was gone she gathered her composure and finished the dishes.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"Spinelli, can I talk to you?" Lulu asked as she sat on the couch next to him.

He adjusted his hat "I am always accessible for conversation with you. What is it that has caused you tension? Would it be your vanished sibling?"

"Yea. I think I am going to move out. I don't feel right freeloading off of Jason anymore… and with everything going on with Lucky, Liz and Jason, I don't want my brother to think that I am not on his side or supporting him. If he comes back." Lulu said.

"I fear most for your shelter from the minions of darkness. I worry that if you move from here the evil doer will triumph."

Lulu stood from the couch, "I really appreciate that you care Spinelli, you are a really good friend. Jason really has been nice to let me stay here but I am going to move out before it turns out bad." She walked toward the steps, "I need to go get ready for dinner, what are you doing for dinner tonight?"

"I have yet to decide on my nightly nourishment as of yet. I will be laboring away battling the force fields in cyberspace tonight" He replied.

"I will bring you back some food when I am done at the Quatermaines. It will take me a day or two to decide where I am going to stay so I'll be back tonight." Lulu yelled over her shoulder as she disappeared up the stairs.

---------

"Cam, I think it is time for your bath." Liz said getting up from the couch. Jason had been playing with Cameron for over an hour and he was beginning to rub his eyes. Cameron puffed out his lower lip and gave Liz a pouty look. "Maybe Jason will come back tomorrow to play with you again."

Cameron turned to Jason who pulled him onto his lap, "Of course I will, I'll come over and play with you tomorrow and whenever you want, ok?"

"Yay!" Cameron shouted.

Liz bent down and picked Cameron up. She turned to Jason before leaving the room "Do you wanna put Jake down?" He nodded and she headed up to give Cameron a bath.

Twenty minutes later Liz returned downstairs to find that Jason has fallen asleep on the couch. She smiled and sat next to him, tucking her feet under her. She snuggled into his side. Her movements must have woken him because his arm came down around her and his hand wrapped around hers. "Hey, is Cam asleep?" He asked.

"Yea, I think he was asleep before his head hit the pillow. I peeked in Jake's room and he is out like a light too. Thank you."

"For what?" he asked.

"Everything but mainly spending time with Cameron. With everything going on with Lucky he has not spent much time with Cam. Today Cam was asking about him and it upsets me that he doesn't understand. It's like he thinks that Lucky is mad at him."

Jason tangled his fingers between hers while his other went to her chin to angle it up so she was looking at him "Well, I didn't want to say this in front of Cam but I talked to Lulu today. She said that Lucky left town."

She sat straight up, pulling herself from his warmth, "What!"

He instantly reached over and recaptured her hand, "I don't really know the details. She came in yelling at me for telling Lucky, I think she is just worried that Lucky wont understand if he finds out that she knew all along."

"I guess that explains why he didn't answer the phone when I called him earlier."

Jason raised his eyebrows "You called him?"

"Yea, Cam was asking about him. I thought it may help if he talked to him on the phone but Lucky didn't answer."

Jason pulled Liz onto his lap so she was sitting sideways with her back against the arm of the couch. She wrapped her arm around his back and the other found his hand and she linked her fingers in his. "I know it is hard but it is probably for the best. It is probably easier for Cam this way. He may be sad at first but it will get better over time."

"I know this much, when he is spending time with you he is so happy, it makes me so happy. You make us all so happy." She leaned her forehead against his "Today I am most thankful that you are in my life, finally… I love you." She did not mean to get emotional but her eyes welled with tears. She brought her lips to his and kissed him. He moved the hand from behind her back up and grabbed a fistful of her hair, holding her head in place. His tugged on her hair, causing her to moan and tilt her head to the side, exposing her neck. He proceeded to feast on her neck. The sensation was so intense that she let out a whimper. He spent forever kissing her neck, occasionally stopping to trail kisses to her mouth and back again. Her hand had shifted to the back of his head and her body began to shift till she was finally straddling him.

His mouth again found hers as his hands slid up her thighs to her stomach. She wrapped both hands around his neck and grabbed a fistful of hair in each, steadying his head so she could control the kiss. Her tongue dominated his and she began to grind down on him and he moaned into her mouth. His hands found the bottom of her shirt and quickly pulled it over her head, causing her to break the kiss. He trailed kisses across the top of her breasts as his hands reached around her back to unhook her bra. He leaned back to slide the straps down her arms and stopped to take her in. His eyes met hers and he said "You are beautiful." She bit her lip, his gaze was so intense and she felt completely exposed, physically and emotionally. His hand moved up to cup her cheek and she leaned into it. "I love you so much." He said. His other hand moved to the back of her head and pulled her into a kiss as his hands found their way to cup her breasts. He removed one hand and bowed his head to replace it. His tongue flicked at the tip and Liz moaned his name. Her hands held his head in position, not wanting the feeling to end. He took her nipple in his mouth, licked and sucked then moved to the other to show it the same attention. He trailed kisses up to her neck then found her mouth. He kissed her till she finally had to pull her head back to catch her breath.

She tugged on his shirt and he shrugged it over his head. Her hands splayed across his chest as she bent down to scatter kisses across it. The sensation of her lips and tongue on his skin felt like fire. She lifted her lips to his neck where she kissed, sucked and nibbled as she began grinding down on him once again.

She lifted herself from his body and kneeled on the floor in front of the couch, between his legs. She tugged on the button of his jeans and slowly pulled on the zipper. She reached around his sides and grabbed the waistband of his pants. He helped her as she pulled grabbing his boxer briefs with them. Setting them aside she returned to her position kneeling between his legs. She leaned in and before he could stop her she had taken him in her mouth. He moaned as his head tilted to meet the back of the couch. His hips rolled with her movements. He was letting her take control and damn was she good at it but could not let it continue much longer. He grasped at the arm of the couch with one hand and reached for her with the other. His hand finally found her head and nudged her back.

"Ok, you need to stop."

She shot him a devilish smile before standing up. He closely watched as she unbuttoned her jeans and slowly slid them with her panties down her legs. She kicked them aside and knelt on the couch with her legs straddling her over him. She placed her hands on his shoulders, positioned herself and slowly lowered herself. He put one hand on her hip and the other hooked around the back of her neck. He pulled her neck forward till his forehead met hers. His eyes met with hers. His hand guided her hips as her paced continued slow. He moved his hand from her neck and she held her forehead to his, occasionally leaning in to place kisses on his lips. He felt that she was close and his free hand slid to cover her other hip and he urged her to speed up her pace. Her body started to quake and he leaned to kiss her as he guided her to move yet faster. She broke the kiss when she let out a long, loud moan that sent him over the edge. She slammed down on him one last time before he screamed out her name, releasing himself deep inside her. His hands shifted from her hips and he ran them up and down her spine.

They stayed there connected till their breathing returned to normal when he picked her up and carried her to bed.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Elizabeth walked in the restaurant (fittingly called Harbor) and immediately spotted Emily and Monica sitting at a table near the window. Elizabeth was running behind. She had woken up and Jason was gone. She knew he had to go but it still saddened her. Then Cameron was being difficult and it took forever to get his together and then Jake too. She was 10 minutes late. "I'm so sorry, it's one of those mornings." She said walking to Emily and kissing her cheek then turning to Monica and kissing her cheek as well. She took her seat at the table.

"It's ok Liz." Monica said "I remember what it was like, even though it was a long time ago." Liz looked across the table to Emily who mouthed to her that Monica does not know about Jake. Liz nodded and returned her attention to Monica. "A.J. was the worst, he never listened."

"Well mom, before we get started on wedding talk, Liz wanted to talk to you about something." Before Emily could complete her sentence Liz's head popped up and gave Emily an 'I am going to kill you' look.

"Oh? Is everything ok Elizabeth?" Monica asked.

Liz took in a deep breath and turned to Monica. "Well, I guess I can tell you now. I'd rather wait till Jason was here but being the Em is like a kid on Christmas morning when it comes to my person life anymore I will tell you now." Monica had a confused look on her face. Monica, Jason is Jake's father… which makes you his grandmother."

Monica sat in shock for a minute, finally muttering "What about Lucky?"

"Long story but whatever reasons we had for keeping it a secret, it is not anymore. And, I would love for you to get to know Jake."

"Are you and Jason together?" she asked.

Liz thought for a minute how she should answer that. "Well, we are working on it, getting there. Jake was… err… is a product of the Enduro fiasco, but is in no way a mistake. Jason and I have been pushing and pulling each other for so many years, I guess fate just gave us something to set us right."

Monica's was still shocked "Forgive me, it will take a few minutes for me to recover from the shock. I am…. Elated. I have a grandson?"

Emily nodded. "Yes mom."

Monica stood from the table and pulled Liz up into a hug. "You have no idea how much this means to me." She whispered into Liz's ear before stepping back and returning to her chair with tears in her eyes.

"Ok," Emily said "Let's get this wedding planned. So far I have decided on a Christmas Eve wedding. I have not decided where yet… definitely not Wyndemere considering what happened at the Ball, I don't think anyone would show up."

"How about the Metrocourt?" Liz suggested.

"Or my house." Monica suggested. The waitress came and took their orders.

"I'll have the fruit plate." Emily said, Liz and Monica glaring at her, "What, I have to fit in a wedding dress… and a coffee."

Liz pointed at her menu, "I'll have that and a coffee as well."

Monica closed her menu, "I'll have a coffee and the Belgian waffle." The waitress quickly disappeared after gathering the menus.

"I don't know, I want something different. I know of this little chapel just outside of town that I would love to have the ceremony at… but I don't know about the reception."

Liz looked around the restaurant they were at. Monica instantly caught on and said "Em how about here?" Liz nodded. "We can talk to the owner and have them close down for a night. This place is beautiful, overlooking the harbor."

"You know what, if you can book it I am all for it. I love this place, I always forget it is here. Ever since the Metrocourt opened it seems like we always go there." Emily said. "As long as this place works, I'll meet with the cook and florist as soon as possible… Ummm… Liz you are my only attendant and Nick hopes to have Lucky if he returns by then."

Liz's head popped up to Emily, "I guess I expect that, but it will be your wedding day, I will be fine." The waitress dropped their coffees off.

"I know it will be hard." Liz nodded, "Anyway… We will have Spencer as the ring bearer and I am going to ask Jason to give me away." Liz and Monica both got huge grins on their faces, "Ok, that's a check for Jason, obviously that was a good idea." Emily laughed as she made and fake check mark in the air.

They continued going over the basic details of the ceremony and reception. Emily agreed that there would be no wedding party dance, announcement or anything else that would have Liz and Lucky together. Their food arrived and Monica and Emily laughed when they saw what Liz had ordered. It was a huge loaded omelet with a side of fried potatoes, bacon, and four pieces of toast. "What?" Liz asked when she noticed their eyes on her. "I'm hungry."

"Wow Liz," Emily said, "What did you do to work up such an appetite?"

Liz's jaw dropped and instantly felt embarrassed. Monica chuckled and quickly changed the subject. "When are you going dress shopping?" Emily laughed.

They went over everything and planned the entire wedding. They talked to the waitress and she sent the restaurant owner over. After talking to him and planning everything out they decided to have it at Harbor and everything was taken care of.

---------

Jason closed the door, "How did it go?" he asked.

"Well I found him. I told him exactly where Trevor was staying." Johnny said.

"Ok, our guy in the PCPD told Mac that he got an anonymous tip that Anthony Zacharra, who was responsible for everything at that ball, will probably show up at Trevor's room at the Metrocourt. They have him under surveillance. Then when they move in it will be all over the news that Trevor was involved and Zacharra was visiting him." Jason said.

Johnny folded his arms, "I did try to get him to go home with me but he wouldn't go. I hope this plan works, hopefully the police will get to my father before he finds Lulu. I'd rather he be in jail or an institution then dead, even after all he has done."

"I understand, but if this plan does not work that is our only option." Jason said.

Johnny nodded. "And Trevor will either be implicated with my father or at worst be smeared across the news as being involved with him. Either way he will lose his notoriety." He went to continue speaking but stopped himself when the door opened. Lulu and Logan walked in.

"Hey." Lulu said to the, she turned to Johnny "What are you doing here?"

"Just talking to Jason about a few things. My father hasn't bothered you has he?

Logan answered "We saw him at Kelly's. The door was locked and I appeared so I guess it scared him away." Jason and Johnny gave each other a look.

"It's not like my father to be scared away." Johnny turned back to Lulu, "Just be careful." He walked toward the door. "I'll keep in touch Jason. Bye."

Once Johnny was gone Lulu walked over to Jason, "I think it would be best if I moved out." Jason nodded. "I don't want to overstay my welcome and with everything going on I don't want to cause any more problems or discomfort."

"I understand, you do know that you don't have to go. Do you have somewhere to stay?" Jason asked.

"She will be staying with me." Logan interrupted. Lulu shot his a shocked look. She had planned to move back into the Quatermaines and had been dreading it. Last time she lived with Logan it did not work out but she was willing to take the chance living with him then the crazy Quartermaines.

"I'm sure Spinelli would love to have his space back anyway." She chuckled, "I'll get my stuff out today."

Jason nodded, "That's fine. If you ever need somewhere to stay you are more ten welcome to stay here. I know that things are complicated right now because of your brother but if you need anything…"

"I know, thank you for letting me stay here and for protecting me." She said.

"You're welcome." Lulu disappeared up the stairs leaving Jason and Logan alone.

"So what was Johnny here for?" Logan asked.

Jason turned away from Logan and walked over to the couch "Business."

"So now he is working with you, I don't think I would trust him." Logan said.

"Well who I trust is none of your business, you work for me remember?"

"I'm just offering my opinion man."

"If I wanted it then I would've asked for it." Jason snapped. "Since you gave it anyway it is noted. Once this Zacharra mess is cleaned up and you don't have to watch Lulu anymore I have a job for you down on the island. You and a few guys will have to go for a couple days. I will give you the details when the time comes." Logan nodded. Jason turned and walked out of the room. Logan waited a few minutes till Lulu reappeared from upstairs with a small duffle bag.

"Ready to go, I'll come back later to get the rest of my stuff." She said as she made her was down the steps. "I want to talk to Spinelli anyway."

"Fine."

"Is everything ok? Are you sure that you want me to stay with you because I can stay at the Quartermaines."

"Yes and yes… now lets get home."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Jason stepped off the elevator. He had gotten stuck at work the night before and did not get to see Elizabeth so he decided to stop at the hospital to see her on his way to Sonny's. She was standing at the nurses station with Emily looking at a picture of what appeared to be a wedding dress. They both looked up at him and smiled.

"Hey there." Emily said.

"What brings you by, not that it isn't nice to see you." Liz asked.

Jason grinned, "I thought I'd stop and see if you wanted to grab lunch with me."

Elizabeth made a pouty face, "I can't take my break for at least another hour. I'm slammed right now. Rain check… maybe dinner, my house?" Jason nodded.

"Hey, how about settling for lunch with your sister?" Emily asked. "I wanted to talk to you about something anyway."

He smiled, "Sure". Emily folded the dress picture and placed it in her pocket. Jason winked at Liz and met her eyes "I'll see you tonight."

"Yes you will." She said as she watched them walk away.

Jason and Emily went to the cafeteria and sat to eat their lunch. "I must say Jason, you sure are smiling a lot lately."

He grinned and shook his head "So how are the wedding plans coming?"

"Actually, that is what I wanted to talk to you about. I have a question to ask you." He looked up from his plate and met her eyes. "I was wondering if, since dad is gone… Will you give me away."

Jason again smiled, "I would be honored to."

"Good!"

"So when is this wedding?"

"Christmas Eve."

Jason sat back in his chair. "Wow, can you plan a wedding that quick? Of course you can." He sat there while she told him all the plans she had made so far. It had only been a couple days and she seemed to have everything under control. "If there is anything else you need from me, just let me know."

"I know, thank you Jason… for everything."

"I'd do anything for you Em." He said before he took his last bite.

She nodded and smiled, "So… how are things going with Elizabeth?" He shot her a look. "Don't get mad, I'm staying out of it, just asking. You two just better not screw this up again, I'll be pissed."

Jason rolled his eyes. "We're trying to work it out."

"Work it out? This is not a business deal Jason. You two have a son, you love each other, just stop walking away or giving up on each other. You need for fight for her this time Jase! Nothing is easy, especially love. In the end you will discover that being together as a family is worth any obstacle." He sighed.

"Well, thank you for the advice." Jason stood and put his leather jacket on. Emily followed and stood from her chair. "Keep me posted on the wedding plans."

"Alright Jase, I will." She gave him a hug and kissed his cheek. "I'll talk to you later."

"Ok, see ya."

---------

Trevor flipped his phone shut and walked over to his desk when there was a knock on his door. He went and opened it. "Anthony, how nice to see you. Come in." He moved aside and Zacharra entered his room.

_Meanwhile, out in the hall a man was making a phone call._

Trevor attempted to hold in his excitement. This was perfect, Anthony had returned and things could go back to normal… or should they not? He glanced toward his desk drawer that housed a gun, ready and loaded.

"Being that you are trying to steal my business from me, I cannot say it is nice to see you." Anthony was talking with his hands. "You see Trevor I think it is time that you make a decision. Well, I will give you a choice, A or B."

"Sure Anthony, what are my choices?" he said walking toward the desk.

"Don't you patronize me Trevor!" Zacharra's voice was raising as he pointed his finger toward Trevor. "No where was I? Oh yeah… You have 2 choices, A, I can kill you now or B, I can torture you a little, expose you for the weasel you are, then kill you. Actually it is the same outcome, just different scenarios."

"Anthony, what are you talking about, you don't want to kill me."

"You are not the one in charge Trevor, I am." He pulled his gun out of the back of his pants. "Who has the control now? You know I should have known from the beginning that you would betray me. Do you have any final words before you die?"

Trevor laughed and crossed his arms on his chest. "Well Anthony, I would like to give you two choices now, I know they won't matter if I am dead but humor me. It's going to be a tough choice though."

A surprised look came to his face, "I love challenges."

"Well, I have ordered a hit on your son, should I, A, call off the hit or B, let you live. So your son's life or your life?"

Zacharra waved his gun from side to side as if he was thinking about the question. "Hmmm, that's a tough one there Trevor, although Johnny does nothing but cause me problems so kill him. That's never going to happen though. Once I kill you the guards will not get paid and will lose interest in looking for Johnny." He pulled the trigger and the gun clicked.

Trevor laughed. "You came after me with a gun that was not loaded. Not very smart if you ask me." He reached in the desk drawer behind him. "Now this, this is a loaded gun Anthony." He said as he pulled the gun out of the drawer and pointed it at him. "We have had a good run there Anthony. I have enjoyed…"

Before he could complete his sentence the door was kicked open, it startled Trevor. He had never killed a man before, at least not by his own hands. He had threatened to but left the killing up to his men. Deep down he thought it was not as bad if he didn't physically pull the trigger. The trigger was more sensitive then he thought it would be. He had shot guns before and did not remember it being that eat to set off. The bullet hit him in the head. Regardless of threats, he would not have killed Anthony. He would have someone else do it, but it was not in his plans.

He had been facing away from the door. When the men stormed the room he half expected it to be his guards. As soon as they yelled for him to drop the weapon he knew otherwise. Instantly his mind started to think up defenses as he was cuffed, but nothing would work and he knew it.

---------

"Got an update on the situation." Sonny said glaring at Jason as he entered his office.

Jason stepped around and sat in one of the chairs in front of Sonny's desk. "Nothing yet." He wiped his hand from his forehead to his chin as he leaned forward in the chair.

"So what else is going on, it is obvious that something is." Sonny waved his hands toward himself "Come on, tell me."

Jason let out a deep breath. "Well the we told Lucky that Jake is mine. Lucky left town the other night."

Sonny made one of his dimpled smiles, "Well that's a good thing, right?"

"I hope so. Elizabeth and I are trying to figure it all out, I guess it is kind of exhausting. Then you compile Emily on top of that, Zacharra, everything else we are trying to figure out that happened at the ball… I am sure I am missing something. I guess for the first time, probably ever, I feel overwhelmed."

"Parenthood will do that to you. Wait till Jake gets bigger." Sonny chuckled. He stood from his desk and walked over to grab a bottle of water. "Wait, is Emily ok?"

"Yea, she is fine. She is planning her wedding, a quick one. I had lunch with her and she is really pushing me on stuff." Jason sat back in the chair, he was beginning to feel uncomfortable talking about his feelings with Sonny.

"Liz?"

Jason nodded as his cell phone rang. "Morgan…" he listened to the caller for over a minute before responding. "Thank you for the information." He flipped his phone she and stood from the chair. "Sonny, you may wanna sit down for this one."

"Is it bad?"

"No, it looks like our problems just handled themselves." Jason told him what had happened in Trevor's room.

"Wow, how often does that happen."

"Yea," Jason shook his head. "I will put a call into Johnny, he should know. Now we will see if he sticks to his end of the bargain." He walked over to the door before Sonny stopped him.

"Jason? Let me give you some advice. I know that you love Liz and that she feels the same for you, I see it, I am not as blind as Lucky." Sonny flashed his dimpled smile again. "Don't put pressure on yourself or even her and don't let anyone else either. I'm sure that Emily is pushing you two together but she just sees the same thing everyone else does." Jason nodded to Sonny and left the office.

---------------------

Thanks again for all the positive feedback. Feel free to offer suggestions. I have the story outlined but it is always subject to change. I should have another chapter up sometime tonight.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"Oh Em, that dress is gorgeous!" Elizabeth said, nearly shouting.

"You're freaking kidding me right?" Emily said as she turned to see Elizabeth's face. As soon as their eyes met they both broke into laughter. "I… " Emily had to take a deep breath to get her thought out without laughing, "I look like the Stay Puft marshmallow man." Emily blurted out as she bent over in laughter.

A few minutes later the ladies had regained their composure. "Next!" Liz said.

Emily turned back toward the dressing room. "We'll leave puff ball at the top of the list though." A few dresses later Emily stepped out and Elizabeth's jaw dropped.

"Oh my gosh Em, that is unbelievable. That dress…"

"Good, I like it to, I was afraid I would come out and you would start laughing again. I really like this one. I'd say that it just pushed the marshmallow dress to number 2."

"Or you could get that one and put the other one on a stick and hold it over a fire." Elizabeth suggested then once again they burst into laughter.

"Well hello ladies, having fun in my store?" Carly said with a smirk.

Both Emily and Elizabeth lost their smiles. They knew that coming to the Metrocourt boutique was risking a run-in with Carly but they figured it was worth the chance.

"Everything is going great, it looks like I found a dress. Now we just have to find Liz's." Emily said.

Carly turned on her heel to face Elizabeth. "Oh, Lizzie, going to marry my cousin again just to torture him a little more? Or are you living in some dream that Jason will ask you some day."

"I am Emily's maid of honor and best friend." Elizabeth stated abruptly.

"Good thing, you have already run Lucky out of town… leaving Cam and his son behind." Emily and Elizabeth shot each other a look. She did not know, Elizabeth could not believe that the news had yet to make it to her.

"It's complicated." Elizabeth said as she bit her lower lip and turned away.

"Complicated? Whatever, just stay away from Jason. Stop pulling the poor 'Oh come save me Jason" act. He does not love you, I think he actually pities you".

Elizabeth was now getting angry and was not going to let her get away with saying what she said. "So do you want to know why Lucky left town?"

"No, not really. I want to know if you called Jason to cry to him when he did."

She got in Carly's face and said in a low voice "I didn't have to call him, he was in my bed, next to me." Carly's jaw dropped to the ground and Emily, who was standing behind Carly brought her hand to her mouth, partially in shock and partially to hide her smile. She could not believe Liz had just admitted that, more less tell Carly. Liz continued, "And in case you really do want to know why Lucky left town… I'll tell you. Jason told him that he is Jake's father and that we both have known all along but made the decision to keep it quiet to keep both Jake safe and Lucky sober." She paused and reached down to grab her purse. "So if you are thinking I am not going to be in Jason's life, you are so soooo wrong." She leaned her head to the side so she could see Emily. "Order that dress Em, you look great. Call me when you leave."

Elizabeth turned and walked out of the store leaving a stunned Carly behind. When she got to her car she finally took a breath. She could not believe that she had just told Carly all that but she was so angry. Pulling out her phone she dialed Jason but got his voicemail. He needed to be warned because Carly was probably already on his way to his place. She told his voicemail exactly what happened, as close as word for word as she could, then told him that she loved him and hung up.

---------

Spinelli walked down the steps of the Penthouse and saw Jason sitting on the couch reading through a file. "Stonecold?"

"Yea?"

"Apologies for interrupting your most important work but did the blonde one move out?" he asked.

Jason finally looked up from the papers, "Yea, after everything that has happened she just didn't feel right staying here." Spinelli nodded and gloomily went back upstairs. Jason lowered his eyes back to the papers when there was a knock at the door. He huffed and went to open it. He found Johnny standing on the other side. "Hey." Jason moved to allow Johnny to enter. I've been trying to get you on the phone, I guess you know what happened?"

He nodded "I didn't realize it would effect me how it has. I guess no matter how you look at it he was my father. Anyway, I am here to tell you that I am keeping up my end of the bargain. I am leaving town and taking any trace of the Zacharra organization with me."

In a somber voice Jason said "I'd like to say thank you but… It just doesn't seem right." He opened his mouth to continue but there was a knock on the door. Before he could even turn to walk to it Carly was storming in.

"Jason we need to talk alone, RIGHT NOW!" she said, holding the door and motioning for Johnny to leave.

Jason took a deep breath and told Johnny that he would be in touch as Carly practically slammed the door in his face.

"YOU ASSHOLE"

"Carly, what the hell is wrong with you?" Jason asked, maintaining his calm.

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME? YOU HAVE BEEN LYING TO ME FOR MONTHS. WHEN WERE YOU GOING TO TELL ME THAT JAKE WAS YOUR SON AND THAT YOU ARE BANGING LIZZIE. I AM YOUR FUCKING BEST FRIEND AND I HAD TO HEAR IT FROM HER WHILE SHE WAS SHOPPING IN MY FREAKING STORE."

He thought to himself that this must be what that missed call from Elizabeth was about. He was going to call her back when he was done going through his paperwork on some shipments. "Will you calm the hell down. We weren't telling anyone but, things happen."

"HOW COULD YOU KEEP SOMETHING LIKE THIS FROM ME JASON? WHAT NOW YOU ARE GOING TO BE ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY WITH LITTLE MISS GOODY TWO SHOES LIZZIE. COME ON JASON, SHE HAS GOT YOU."

"You are right Carly, she does have me. Like I told you before I would love nothing more then to raise a family and be with Elizabeth. I am finally beginning to think that is possible. I love you," His voice raised slightly, "But you need to stay the fuck out of it!"

"JASON, I AM ONLY TRYING TO HELP, WHY LIZZIE…"

He interrupted her now shouting "STAY OUT OF IT CARLY." She went to speak again, "STAY OUT OF IT!" This time he walked over to the door, opened it and motioned for her to leave… and she did.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Liz was sitting in Kelly's with Cameron and Jake eating lunch. She could not believe how smoothly everything had been going lately. It had been a few weeks since Lucky left and Cameron was finally adjusting to him not being around. He was asking about him a little less and being around Jason was definitely helping. Jason was completely taking the role of the male in Cameron's life and they were both enjoying it.

They seemed to be getting into a routine. Four or five time a week Jason would come and eat with her and the boys then he would usually end up staying over, sneaking out in the morning before Cameron would wake up. She knew that eventually she wanted more, wanted him not to leave in the morning, but she was afraid to push… push Jason, Cameron or herself. Jake was still too young to even know what was going on but the bond between him and Jason was noticeably stronger every day.

Elizabeth was shaken from her thoughts when she saw Lulu arriving for her shift. She had not seen her since everything went down and was unsure of how she was feeling. Deep down Elizabeth knew that Lulu blamed her for Lucky leaving. She wondered if Lulu knew that Nicholas and Emily had been in touch with Lucky recently and he had agreed to return to town for the wedding. She had been preparing herself mentally for the rehearsal dinner tonight not only because Lucky would be there and she would be seeing him for the first time since the night at her house. She was also nervous because it would be the first time that her and Jason would be appearing in public, TOGETHER. She wanted everything to be ok with it but knew that tonight was going to be hard.

"Mommy?" Cameron had called her name a few times. Jake was napping in his carrier next to the table.

"I'm sorry baby, mommy was daydreaming." Elizabeth said.

He pushed his plate, "I'm done." He had eaten most of his sandwich and looked up as Lulu approached the table. A huge smile appeared on his face as he jumped from his chair and ran to Lulu.

"Hey Camster, I missed you." Lulu said. She glanced at Elizabeth and said "Hey."

Liz bent down to Cameron, "Hey Cam, since you ate most of your lunch, why don't you run over to the counter and ask mike for a cookie."

"YEAH!" he yelled as he ran up to Mike.

"How have things been?" She asked Lulu.

Lulu rolled her eyes, "Fine, but I can't make small talk with you. I'm not trying to be a hypocrite, I know I knew all along about Jake but I just… he is still my brother and I just don't feel right…"

"I understand Lulu." Liz said nodding her head. Cam returned to the table with a cookie. "Wow, that's a big cookie that Mike gave you. Say good bye to Aunt Lulu, we have lots of errands to run today."

He squeezed Lulu's leg tightly, "Bye, see you later." She said goodbye, Elizabeth gathered the boys and headed out to run her errands.

---------

Hours later she was home getting ready for the rehearsal dinner. Cameron and Jake were at Grams house for the night. Grams was not happy about the idea of her and Jason or the idea that Jake was Jason's son but had agreed to keep her opinion to herself. She couldn't shake her nervousness. Until tonight the only people that knew about her, Jason and Jake were Carly, Sonny, Monica, Emily (she was pretty sure Emily had told Nicholas) and Spinelli, there may be one or two others but they didn't flaunt their relationship, till now. She wanted this, she wanted Jason.

She had decided to wear her hair half up and half down with lots of curls. She wore on a simple spaghetti strap, knee length, form-fitting black dress. As she sat on the bed putting her heels on she heard the door close "Jason?".

"It's me." He yelled from the bottom of the steps.

"Five minutes."

He walked over to the couch "Ok." He yelled. Looking around the house he thought about what it would be like to live here, to wake up with her every morning and play with the boys before he went to work. He wondered if Elizabeth ever thought about that or dreamed about it. He thought about it every day and found himself dreaming about it at night. He had never had dreams before, at least none that were memorable or that happened on a recurring basis. He had proposed to her a couple times since he found out that she was pregnant and was willing to marry her then with all its complications. Now… now he wanted to marry her because he couldn't wait, because he loved her, more then he could ever imagine possible.

He could not imagine not having her in his life. The last month had been amazing. His life had taken a complete 180. He no longer spent every waking minute working or worrying about Sonny and Carly and their family. He now spent his time thinking about his own, even at times daydreaming about it. Deep down he did not want to mess anything up or scare her by moving too quick but he knew what he wanted and there was no doubt in his mind that she wanted it as well.

Quickly she went to the bathroom and applied her makeup, then made her way down the steps. Jason stood and turned as he heard her heels on the steps. His mouth instantly formed a smile "Wow, you look… beautiful." He said as he walked up to her, bent his head and kissed her lightly. She wanted to pull him into another kiss but he backed away and looked her up and down. "You are beautiful."

She looked him over. He was wearing black dress pants and a navy blue button down shirt that made is eyes sparkle even more then usual. She reached her hand to his chest and ran it down the length of the buttons of his shirt, "And you look handsome… actually hot comes to mind." She said as she batted her eyes at him.

He watched her as she walked over to the mirror on the wall to look herself over one more time. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist and stared at their reflection on the mirror. She leaned her head on his shoulders and closed her eyes, "Think Emily would care if we blew off the dinner?" she asked.

"Considering that we are two important parts of the ceremony, I don't think she would understand." He replied as he kissed the top of her head. They stood together for a minute then reluctantly headed to the rehearsal.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The rehearsal was at the church just outside of town, then they were having dinner at the restaurant Harbor where the reception would be at the next day.

Jason and Elizabeth were quiet for the whole car ride, both equally nervous for what was ahead of them for the next 24 hours. When they arrived he walked over,opened her car door and took her hand in his. When they reached the door she turned to him, "You ready for this?"

He took in a deep breath and flashed her a smile, "As long as you are with me, I am ready for anything."

He reached and opened the door. Emily, Nicholas, Monica, Lucky, and the wedding coordinator were already in the church. When they walked in Elizabeth's grip on Jason's hand tightened. Lucky gave them a cold glare. They all stood in silence for a few seconds before the wedding coordinator broke the silence.

"Well, now that we are all here, lets get this started." The coordinator said.

Elizabeth released the death grip she had on Jason's hand and made her way over to greet everyone. She hugged Emily, Nicholas and Monica and approached Lucky, simply saying "Hi." He gave her a reluctant nod.

Jason followed greeting all but Lucky.

"Ok, can I have Emily, Elizabeth and her brother…." The coordinator turned to Emily.

"Jason." Emily said.

"Okay, Emily, Elizabeth and Jason in the back of the church. Everyone else head up to the alter." They all followed the directions to their positions.

Once in the back of the church Emily turned to Jason and Liz, "Don't worry guys, it will be quick."

"We are fine." Liz stated.

Following the directions of the coordinator Liz walked down the aisle as she would the next day. She was careful not to make eye contact with Lucky standing at the end of her path. Once at the end she turned and watched Emily and Jason walking down together. Jason was focused on Liz as he walked with Emily, however he was aware of the glare he was receiving from Lucky. He chose to ignore his impulse to beat the daylights out of Lucky, keeping his focus on her eyes.

For the last few minutes the coordinator went over a few basics and sent everyone on their way.

---------

When they got back in the car to head to dinner Elizabeth said "I cannot believe you did not jump Lucky and beat that look off his face… I wanted to."

"I would never want to ruin this for Emily, but yea, it was hard." He said pulling the car onto the road.

"I'm sorry."

"Elizabeth, you have no reason to be sorry." He said grabbing her hand.

She went to speak but decided against it. When they arrived at the restaurant they were joined by the rest of the Quartermaines, Alexis and Sam. Elizabeth quickly seated herself next to Emily and Jason sat on the other side of her. Nicholas was sitting on the other side of Emily with Lucky next to him.

Jason's hand grabbed Elizabeth's below the table, attempting to be subtle. Throughout dinner they were getting questioning glances from Tracey and Edward, as if they were trying to figure out of they were together or just happened to be sitting next to each other. When dinner was over Elizabeth excused herself to the ladies room and was joined by Emily. Monica saw the empty seat, came over and sat next to Jason.

"I haven't had the chance to really talk to you Jason. You know that Elizabeth told me about Jake?" Monica said.

"Yes, she told me."

"Well, I just wanted to tell you, I am happy for you. I know things are hard but I see the way you look at each other and the look on her face when your name is mentioned." Monica gushed.

Jason smiled thinking about her "I feel the same." He felt eyes on him and looked over to find Lucky glaring at him again. He was about to lose it and go over to him when Edward approached him and Monica.

"Liz, thank you so much, I know this is hard." Emily said as they exited the ladies room.

"I love you Em and would do anything for you, including this." She flashed Emily a smile.

"Hopefully Lucky will pull the stick out his ass long enough tomorrow to get through the ceremony without that nasty frown on his face." Emily said shaking her head. "You and Jase look so happy, I saw you holding hands under the table." She teased. "Are you going to tell the family about Jake tonight?" Liz shrugged her shoulders then nodded. "Maybe next we will be planning your wed…. Crap" Emily looked back toward the group, "Mom and Grandfather have Jason cornered." They looked at each other and hurried back to the table.

Monica stood "Sorry Liz, I stole your seat."

"It's fine, you and Jason probably have a lot to talk about." Elizabeth said sitting down. Edward made a funny face as he was trying to figure out what was so important to talk about. She leaned into Jason and whispered in his ear, "Do you wanna tell him and get it over with?" He took in a deep breath and looked over to Monica.

Unsure of the glances and whispers around him Edward spoke "So Elizabeth, how are those handsome boys doing?"

Liz looked to Jason giving him a nod before speaking. "They are good, growing up quick. Well I do have some news…"

Emily saw that both Jason and Liz were uneasy so she interrupted "Grandfather, Jake is Jason's son."

"An heir?" he asked.

Elizabeth grabbed Jason's hand beneath the table and squeezed. He could tell she did not like the fact that Edward was planning Jake's future role in ELQ in his head.

"Edward, let's go back to our seat and I will fill you in, I don't think they want to hear this." Monica said.

"No, no…" his voice raised, "I want to hear all about my great-grandson."

Sitting at the other end of the table, Lucky caught the tail end of the words coming from Edward's mouth. He was suddenly overcome by rage. He stood from his seat and walked over to them.

In a sarcastic tone Lucky spoke "Yes, Jason, Elizabeth… tell us how he is turning out when he is being raised by a killer and a liar."

Jason stood from his chair, "Lucky, this is not the place."

Lucky laughed, "So you are going to sit here and flaunt what should have been my life in front of me and I am supposed to just sit there?" Nicholas was talking to Alexis when he heard Lucky. He jumped from his seat and went to where they were standing.

"Lucky, come and sit back down. You can yell at them later." Nicholas pleaded.

Lucky raised his voice so the entire restaurant could hear, "No, I want everyone here to hear this. They…" he pointed to Jason and Liz, "Lied to me for months. My son, who I raised for months, is not really mine, he is Jason Morgan's." The sound of gasps filled the room. "Then they told me that they did it for me." Elizabeth stood and pleaded for Lucky to stop. Jason's eyes were dark and narrow, he had his fists clenched tight. Elizabeth placed her hands on his arms to try to keep him calm.

"Would you look at that," Lucky stepped forward, getting closer to Jason, "she is trying to keep you from hitting me again. Go ahead hit me, its what you do. You are nothing but an animal, a murder." He looked to Liz lowering his voice to almost a whisper, "and she is a lying, cheating whore." Liz removed her hands from his arms, almost giving him permission to hit Lucky. She was surprised when he didn't. Instead he grabbed him by the collar and pushed him against the wall. Nicholas tried to get between Jason and Lucky but Jason had him pinned.

"I am here for my sister so I am going to release you and leave, but you'd better hope that I don't see you on the street. Funny thing is, you say that I am an animal and a murder, well she picked me over you… what does that say about you." Jason released him and turned to Nicholas. In a low voice, "Keep him away from me, I don't think I'd be as calm next time." Returning to Elizabeth's side he grabbed her hand, they said their goodbyes and left the restaurant.

---------

Elizabeth and Jason entered the house and went straight to her room. She had tried to talk to him in the car but was only getting one word answers. She went into the bathroom to wash her face and returned to the room to find that Jason had already stripped out of his clothes and gotten in the bed. She quickly stepped out of her dress and slipped on a t-shirt. Climbing in next to him she broke the silence. "Are you mad at me?"

"No."

She huffed and rolled on her side, facing away from him, "Well that makes me feel better." She felt tears forming in her eyes, tried to fight it but lost control and within seconds began crying. She was facing away from him but he could hear her and it broke his heart. He sat up and leaned back against the headboard.

"Elizabeth?" he said, she did not move to face him.

"Hmmm?" she said. He reached for her shoulder but she jerked it away.

"Look at me… please." She ignored his plea. He quickly stood from the bed and walked around to the other side. Kneeling on the floor in front of her, he brushed a hair from her face then wiped away her tears with his thumb. "I'm sorry for being cold. I'm just angry."

She brought her eyes up to meet his. They had softened since the last time she looked at them. "I know you are angry, so am I… but please don't shut me out." She sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed placing one on either side of his body. He scooted closer, wrapped his arms around her hips and laid his head in her lap.

"This is hard, I have never walked away from a fight like that. Hearing him say those words about you was like stabbing knives in my chest. I wanted to kill him. He is only going to push harder and I cannot guarantee that I will be able to control myself next time. I don't want you to have to go through this." He lifted his head and looked into her eyes as tears formed in his, "Elizabeth…I love you… but… if you don't…"

She interrupted, the tears returning to her eyes, "NO, you are not going to push me away!" she forcefully grabbed the sides of his face, holding it in place so he would continue looking at her. "I am not this weak little girl. I don't care what Lucky says or does. I am not going to let you go again." His eyes closed pushing a tear down his cheek. "Jason, I love you. I don't care who disapproves or tries to come between us, it WILL NOT change the way I feel or my desire to be with you. Jason… look at me." he opened his eyes causing more tears to trail down his cheeks disappearing beneath her palms that were still holding the sides of his face. "Don't you want to fight for me?" she whispered, barely getting the words from her mouth between her sobs.

He placed his hands over hers and pulled them from his cheek. He lifted himself off the floor and sat on the side of the bed next to her. His hands wiped his cheeks before shifting to cup her face. "Elizabeth, do not ever doubt my willingness to fight for you." He blinked, another tear wetting his face. "I would fight with Lucky every day if it meant I could be with you. I love you so much." He leaned in to kiss her then laid them back on the bed. He laid on his side and pulled her to him. They wrapped their arms around each other and fell asleep.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Elizabeth was running behind the day of the wedding. She arrived fifteen minutes late to meet Emily at the Quartermaine mansion. "You are late missy!" Emily teased.

"I'm sorry Em." Elizabeth apologized.

"It's ok… are you alright after last night?"

Liz nodded reassuringly, "I am fine. I just hope he doesn't pull anything today." She grabbed her hand, "Today is _your_ day Em, I want it to be perfect."

"It will be. Is everything ok? Did something happen that made you late?"

Elizabeth blushed.

Emily grinned, "Oh my… ok, I don't want to know. He is my brother." They both giggled and began to get ready. Elizabeth's mind traveled back to that morning.

She had woken up and Jason was still sleeping. She got out of bed and made her way to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. Returning back to her room she looked at the clock and had plenty of time. Before getting in the shower she stood in the doorway watching Jason sleeping for a few minutes, thinking about the past month. The thought of climbing back into the bed and laying in his arms was so tempting. She was so lost in her thoughts that she had not noticed his breathing had changed. She climbed in the shower and let the hot water run over her body for a couple minutes, relaxing her muscles. She shampooed and conditioned her hair then turned around to rinse the conditioner from her hair. She was startled to find Jason standing behind her. "Good morning" she said looking into his eyes. 

_"It is." He stated as he put his hand on her stomach and guided her back against the wall. His mouth crashed into hers causing her knees to buckle. His arms caught her waist and he pinned her against the tile. Her hands moved and hooked around his shoulders as his tongue explored her mouth. _

_She finally pulled back from the kiss to catch her breath and he moved to her neck, kissing and sucking on her spot. "Jason… I…Oh god, I'm going to be late." He removed his lips from her neck and trailed his fingers across the area he had just feasted on. He looked her in the eye and kissed her lightly before backing away from her and pulling her back under the shower head._

_"Finish." He insisted. She stood still for a moment, coming down from the high he had just given her. It was suddenly so hot in there and she was having trouble breathing. She quickly finished and stepped out of the shower. As she stepped out he mumbled "I guess I'll make this a cold one." She pretended not to hear him and wrapped the towel around her body. _

_A few minutes later he came out of the bathroom with his towel around his waist, water dripping from his hair, trailing down his chest. Before he knew what was happening she tugged off his towel then her own and pushed him on the bed._

"Liz… yoohoo?" Emily said, waving a hand in from of Elizabeth's face.

She was shaken from her thoughts, "Huh?"

"Have you heard a word I've said?" Emily asked.

"I'm sorry Em, what were you saying?"

Emily smiled, "Wow, you've got it bad." They both giggled. "I said, we need to have a girls night out since I did not have a bachelorette party. I was thinking before I leave on the honeymoon next week."

"That sounds perfect Em, I could go for a Jake's night."

"Tequila!" Emily shouted as she slipped into her dress.

Elizabeth laughed but quickly got a serious look on her face. "Em, I am so sorry for last night. I did not want that to happen, it was supposed to be your night."

"Stop that Liz, it is not your fault. Don't you dare feel bad."

"Did everyone go crazy once we left?" Elizabeth asked.

Emily shrugged her shoulders, "Grandfather was actually ecstatic about Jake… you know he's a Quartermaine heir and all." She chuckled. "I guess Sam filled Alexis in on her version of the story. Nicholas and Lucky went outside and talked. I don't really know what they talked about but Lucky did come in and apologize to me. I cannot believe Lucky said that to you Liz, even more so that Jason did not kick his ass for saying it."

"Well it's not the first time he called me that, Jason kicked his ass last time, that was right before he left town last month. I think Jason surprised himself that he was able to maintain control this time... Anyway, enough about my dysfunctional life, today is your day Em, I am not going to let anything ruin it."

"Oh honey, the Quatermaines put the 'fun' in dysfunctional. A family event without a fight would be a miracle. I love you Liz and I just want you to be as happy as I am." Emily said as she looked at herself in the mirror. She smoothed her hands over the front of her dress.

"I know, I am Em." She said walking over to Emily. "You are the most beautiful bride, lets go get your prince!"

---------

Jason stepped out of the limousine and held his hand out to help Elizabeth the Emily out of the car. They quickly entered the side of the church. The church was filled with the smell of roses. There were hundreds of white and red roses. The inside with lit by candlelight. A few minutes later they were assembled in their positions and the music started. Elizabeth turned to Jason and Emily, gave them a wink and made her way down the aisle to her position. She felt Lucky looking at her but she avoided looking in his direction except to flash Nicholas a smile.

Jason and Emily appeared at the back of the church and began their walk down the aisle. Emily's gaze was fixed on Nicholas, she was beaming. Elizabeth's heart pounded as she looked on to Jason who has his eyes locked on her. His stare was intense and as he walked down the aisle closer to her she mouthed 'I love you' to him. She knew he was the only set of eyes on her, everyone was looking at Emily and Nicholas. He kissed Emily on the cheek and took his seat in the first row directly behind where Elizabeth was standing. The ceremony was quick, it began with a blessing followed by a poem to be read for the couple by Elizabeth. She took he position at the podium and read her poem by E.E Cummings. She felt him the entire time she was reading, he knew that she was not just reading to Emily and Nick but to him as well…

_I carry your heart with me (I carry it in my heart)_

_I am never without it (anywhere I go you go, my dear; and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling)  
I fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) _

_I want no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)  
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant  
and whatever a sun will always sing is you _

here is the deepest secret nobody knows 

_here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows higher than soul can hope or mind can hide  
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart _

I carry your heart (I carry it in my heart) 

Elizabeth returned to her location next to Emily. Less then ten minutes later, the ceremony was complete and they were pronounced husband and wife. Emily and Nicholas exited the church leaving Elizabeth and Lucky to walk out arm in arm. She linked her arm in his and forced a smile as they made their way to the rear of the church. Once in the back she quickly unhooked her arm from his and stepped away.

"Elizabeth, before we head to the reception, I think we should talk."

"Lucky, don't do this. Not today." She replied abruptly. They were standing off to the side of the entry hall as the guests began filing out of the church. "This is Em and Nicks day, as was yesterday. You can yell at me later."

"Oh, is that why you were flaunting your happy family around the dinner?" he said snidely.

"They asked and I did not bring it up." Liz saw Jason approaching and wanted to end the conversation before he got involved and another fight happened. "We are not doing this." She turned to walk away.

Lucky grabbed her arm "Elizabeth, wait!" His grasp on her arm was quickly removed when Jason shoved him away from her.

Jason's eyes grew dark as they had the previous night, refusing to look directly at Lucky he said "Lucky, don't do this today." He took Elizabeth's hand and they exited the back of the church. "You know it is going to be a miracle if we can get through the reception without him opening his mouth again."

She nodded as they climbed in the back of the limo, "Just wait to kick his ass till after Emily and Nicholas leave… If you don't then I will."

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I hope everyone is enjoying the story. I will try to get the next chapter done as quickly as possibly but it is going to take a day or two to get it written. There is going to be a fight and I don't want to mess it up.


	20. Chapter 20

Sorry for making this such a long file. I couldn't find any good spots to break it into two.

Chapter 20

The reception was beautiful. Elizabeth was amazed that Emily had pulled this together in a month. The entire restaurant was lit by candlelight. Emily and Nicholas had arrived and took their seats at a table in front of a huge window that overlooked the harbor. Jason and Elizabeth sat at a table with Sonny, Kate, Carly and Jax. Lucky sat at the table on the other side of Emily and Nicholas with Luke, Tracey, Monica, Lulu and Edward. Since they had arrived at the reception he had made multiple visits to the bar. Shortly after the guests were seated, Lucky rose from his chair.

"I'd like to toast the couple." He held up his glass. "To my brother Nicholas and his bride Emily, I wish you all the happiness, you both deserve it. You know that they say fifty percent of marriages don't make it, well, being that this is the second time around, it looks like you two are good to go. May you be blessed with love, honesty and fidelity." He raised his glass. Elizabeth sat wondering if that was a shot at her or if it was supposed to be a harmless joke. Looking around the room she knew that other guests were wondering the same thing. She looked at Jason at her side, gave his hand a squeeze then grabbed her glass and stood.

"Em… Nick, I look at the two of you and I see what the rest of us have strived for, and a few of us have found... unconditional love. The kind of love that no matter the circumstances, through all obstacles the two of you have endured, you always found your way back to each other. It is like there is this force that brings the two of you together that no one or nothing can shatter. Your unbounded love for each other is beyond words." She raised her glass, "I wish you both joy, happiness and lots of babies. I love you both."

---------

Elizabeth sat in her chair having a conversation with Jax about the crazy Quartermaines. She was distracted by the conversation going on next to her between Jason and Carly. She continued her conversation with Jax but paid attention to what was being said next to her without being obvious about her eavesdropping.

"I doesn't mean that you need to cut me out of your life Jason." Carly said in a low voice.

"Carly, I told you before what I want… before any of this happened. I got it, just stay out of it."

Carly leaned across the table to Jason, thinking that on one else can hear her, "I am only looking out for you Jase, she is going to hurt you. She cannot handle your life, your job. I am only trying to protect you."

"And I thank you for your concern Carly but I am going to say one more time, stay out of it."

Elizabeth caught Jason's words and reached her hand under the table to find his. Carly moved on to bugging Sonny as the food arrived. While she ate Elizabeth thought about Carly's words. 'she is going to hurt you'. She wondered if Jason had thought this or worried about it. It had been a month since she decided to move forward with Jason, she was willing to accept everything about him, including his occupation. She knew that there was nothing that would make her walk away from Jason, not again. Last night he had told her that he would fight for her but she had not assured him the same, even though she knew that she would. There was no doubt that she would fight with all that she had to keep Jason by her side.

---------

"So, I see that you and Jason have gotten all cozy with your little family." Sam scowled. Elizabeth was returning from the bar with a glass of wine when she was cut off mid-step by Sam.

"Sam, stop envying my life and live your own. What's the matter, does Lucky not want you anymore?" Elizabeth snapped back.

"Envy!" Sam laughed.

"Yes, Sam, and in case you haven't noticed no matter what you do it will only bring me and Jason closer. Now if you will excuse me…" she went to walk away and Sam grabbed her arm.

"Don't you get too comfortable, he cannot handle it, he is afraid of the danger and deep down, so are you" Before she could reply Sonny walked up. He had been standing off to the side listening to their conversation.

"Sam, leave her alone." Sonny insisted.

Sam rolled her eyes "I'm done with her anyway." She said to Sonny before walking away.

Elizabeth turned to Sonny, "Thank you for that… she is relentless."

"She has a point." Elizabeth gave him an uneasy look. "This past month, hell, this past yea, Jason has been different. His head is not in his work, it is with you and his son. He has been delegating more work rather doing it himself. I am fine with this, but I am not fine with it if he is doing it all, putting himself on the line for you and in the end you not being able to handle it. Jason is like a brother to me and I will not let him be hurt like that, I don't think he could handle losing his family."

"Sonny, I don't know what to say… I am not going anywhere. I don't know how I can reassure you of that. All I can say is that I will not walk away, not again. I love him." He nodded his head and she returned to the table to take her seat at Jason's side. She was sitting at the table going over the conversations from the night. First Carly, then Sam, even Sonny had his doubts.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Emily's hand grabbing hers and dragging her out to the dance floor. They danced for fifteen minutes before they moved to the side of the dance floor to take a break. They talked about how beautiful everything was and about the honeymoon. Emily and Nick were waiting till after new years to leave for Europe because of work and they wanted to be home at Christmas and New Years with Spencer. Out of the corner of her eye Elizabeth saw Sam pulling Lucky to the dance floor. They appeared to have heated words before he agreed. Once on the floor he seemed to cool off and within minutes they were practically groping each other. She figured that as long as Lucky and Sam were occupying each other they would leave Jason and her alone.

Before Emily and Elizabeth could make their way back out to dance, a slow song came on and an announcement was made that it would be the last of the night. "Looks like I need to go find my husband." Emily said as she floated across the room back toward her table. Elizabeth did not see that she walked past Jason, who was sitting with Sonny, and whispered something in his ear before meeting Nicholas and leading him to the dance floor. Elizabeth stood watching as Emily and Nicholas began moving to the song. She was so happy for her best friend. Suddenly there was a hand on her side and she felt warm breath on her ear.

Jason whispered, "So Emily told me that I have to dance."

"Is that so? You have to be forced to dance with me?" she teased as he guided them to the dance floor.

"I don't dance period, but for you…" He pulled her close to him and wrapped his arms around her. "For you I will do anything." She looked at his eyes as they began to slowly sway, not paying attention to the fact that they were barely moving. Her hands hooked around the back of his neck as his eyes maintained their intense connection with hers. It was such an intimate moment, everyone seemed to disappear. The passionate gaze between them had them hypnotized. They paid no attention to the fact that over a dozen pairs of eyes were watching them, judging. The song was coming to an end and couples were leaving the dance floor, they stayed till the very last note.

Emily and Nicholas made their way around the room thanking everyone for coming and saying their goodbyes before exiting the restaurant. A few minutes later Elizabeth was in the lobby and Jason was walking up with her coat. He helped her pull it on then took a look to see if there was anyone around. Not seeing anyone he leaned in and gently kissed her. "I love you." He whispered as he pulled her into his arms.

Lucky had been standing around the corner and witnessed the moment Jason and Elizabeth had. He took a few steps and came within their view. Elizabeth took a step away from Jason.

"Oh, don't stop on my account, you don't have to hide your affair anymore." Lucky exclaimed.

Jason rolled his eyes and Elizabeth took the bait for the fight. "Lucky, you don't know what you are freaking talking about. You talk about lying and cheating as if you are perfect. You slept with Maxi repeatedly in our bed, I don't care if you were on drugs, it hurt all the same. Then you slept with Sam, I was trying to make our marriage work and you gave up and took up with the first slut that came your way because I wouldn't give you any."

"Sam is not a slut!" he shot back.

Jason stood back, he knew that if or when he got involved that it would turn physical. "If it walks like a duck Lucky. You go into that room where all the guests are and count how many of the men in there that she has slept with, at least that she is not related to. Wait, that doesn't matter to her either, she slept with her step father, that counts as a relative."

"What Sam has done in the past is none of my business Elizabeth! You were not trying to make our marriage work. You were in love with Jason, not me." He said taking a step closer.

"Lucky I was trying to save our family, I wanted it to work."

"NO, YOU WANTED JASON! Tell me Elizabeth, why did you let me believe that Jake was mine? Was it because you were afraid that I would relapse or was it because Jason's life is too dangerous?" he asked, stepping even closer to where Elizabeth was standing. Jason was a step behind her.

She took a deep breath. "Lucky, I'm not going to do this anymore. We hurt each other, you were not the only victim here." Lucky laughed and took a step closer to her, he was now less then a foot front of her and this made Jason nervous.

"Lucky, I think it is time to go home." Jason said as he reached forward and put his hand on Liz's shoulder.

"I don't have to listen to you… I want her to admit it." He looked to Liz, "Admit that you were in love with and wanted Jason the whole time." She did not reply, tears had formed in her eyes. "Who is the slut now Elizabeth." Before she knew what was happening, the palm of her hand was colliding with his face and Jason pulled her back as he stepped between her and Lucky.

Jason's eyes were dark "Leave Lucky!" he demanded.

"Or what? Are you going to hit me, let me save you the trouble of that decision." Lucky's fist came flying toward Jason's jaw but was caught by the palm of his hand. Jason immediately pushed Lucky up against the wall. Patrick and Robin were on their way out of the restaurant when the witnessed what had just happened between them.

"Whoa guys, take it easy." Patrick said. "Lets just go home."

Jason held Lucky for another minute, his darkened eyes meeting Lucky's, then he released him, turned to Elizabeth and guided her out the door. Once in the parking lot, Elizabeth turned back to Jason to thank him for keeping his cool yet again but was quickly distracted by something she saw over Jason's shoulder, "JASON!"

Jason turned just as Lucky met up with them and his fist came in contact with Jason's cheek. The punch was not too hard, but Jason knew that it would leave a mark. Jason punched Lucky once, hard in the stomach, sending Lucky balling over to the ground, windless. "I'M NOT DOING THIS WITH YOU LUCKY!"

Sam, Patrick and Robin assembled around them in the parking lot. "My god Jason, he is drunk" Sam cried out.

"Actually, Lucky went after Jason." Robin said to Sam.

Sam turned to Elizabeth, "Are you happy now, do you see what you have done? HUH? DO YOU?"

"Sam, stay the fuck out of it!" Elizabeth shot at her.

"Or what?" Sam said getting in Elizabeth's face, "You gonna hit me? Isn't that what your hit man boyfriend is for? Don't you see Elizabeth, he promised me all the same things. He told me he loved me, and wanted to marry me, even start a family." Elizabeth had reached her breaking point. She hit Sam. Not a slap but a full-on fist clenched punch. She hit Sam as hard as she could, sending her to the ground just a few feet from Lucky.

Elizabeth walked over to where Lucky was still on the ground trying to catch his breath, "I want you out of my life. Don't come near me, don't come near Cameron or Jake or my house, or even Jason for that matter. Because if you do… "

His air had finally returned, "If I do what… you are going to sick your hit man boyfriend on me?" Lucky stood and was inches from Elizabeth's face, "You wanna kill me? Maybe you two are perfect together then."

Jason was instantly at Elizabeth's side, "Elizabeth go get in the car… NOW!" he demanded. She complied. Jason backed Lucky against the wall of the building. He spoke in a low tone so that Robin and Patrick could not hear his words. His forearm held Lucky still while his index finger was pointed at Lucky less then and inch from his face "If I ever find you around Elizabeth or the boys again… if I ever hear you speaking to her again or even asking about her… I WILL fucking kill you. You are garbage." Jason released him, turned and walked away.

Lucky called after Jason "Did you just threaten me? You just threatened a cop!" Jason stopped in his tracks, turned and glared at him for a few seconds before climbing in the car. "I have witnesses." He laughed.

"Witnesses to what?" Robin asked. "I didn't hear what he said to you, I did see you attack him though."

"Yep, I do believe that Lucky threw the first punch." Patrick said, then grabbed Robin's hand and walked to his car.

Jason, Liz, Robin and Patrick all pulled away leaving Lucky and Sam defeated in the parking lot.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Jason and Elizabeth arrived at the Penthouse to find a complete mess. Spinelli was asleep on the couch and Cameron was hanging off the chair sound asleep as a Chuggin Charlie video played on the TV in the background. Elizabeth walked over to the portable crib she had brought over and found Jake sound asleep as well. Jason walked over to Spinelli and hit him on the shoulder. "Good babysitter you are." He joked.

"Oh Stonecold, maternal one… I must have dozed off."

Jason was about to talk but Elizabeth came over to where they were, she was holding Jake, "It's fine. Thank you for babysitting Spinelli. Did everything go ok?"

"Yes, the young prodigies were on their most excellent behavior. Wow Stonecold, that is a ghastly bruise. I take it the wedding was not without confrontation."

Jason ignored Spinelli's comment and maneuvered Cameron into his arms. "I'll be back later Spinelli."

"Thank you again for babysitting Spinelli." Elizabeth called over her shoulder, exiting with Jason following close behind.

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Cameron had slept the whole way home. It was Christmas Eve and Elizabeth wanted him to enjoy the traditional experience. Once inside the house, she woke him up and a half-asleep Cameron helped her put out milk and cookies for Santa and a plate of carrots for the reindeer. Jake was sound asleep in his room and Jason and Elizabeth took a heavy-eyed Cameron to his room to read "Twas the Night before Christmas". Elizabeth wanted to read the story to him and made it through the first page before Cameron was again sound asleep.

Jason helped Elizabeth with the presents she had bought for the boys and added a few that he had purchased as well which surprised her pleasantly. They were already wrapped and marked from Santa. "What did you buy them?"

"You will find out in the morning." He replied with a grin. She walked over to the plate of cookies and began eating them. Once they were gone she looked at the carrots and he saw her make a funny face. "You don't like carrots?"

"They are ok… not really a good follow up to a cookie though."

He shrugged his shoulders and took the carrots from the plate. "I'll eat 'em" He said sitting on the couch and before she knew it they were gone. He turned to the side and put his arm out, inviting her to come sit with him. She accepted, walked over and curled her body into the side of his.

"This is perfect." She felt his head move and knew he was nodding. They sat for a while in silence, staring at the fire with their fingers interweaved. "Thank you for tonight."

"For what?"

"Everything… my dance, getting everything ready for tomorrow morning… mostly for Lucky though." She felt him nodding again. "Jason, I need to ask you something." She sat up and turned her body to face his, tossing her legs over his lap. "Do you worry that I cannot handle your job? More important, are you afraid that I will walk away?"

His eyes were fixed on hers as he reached and pushed a stray hair behind her ear. He was carefully searching his thoughts so his words would come out right. His hesitation to answer her question sent panic through her body. Rather then waiting for an answer she decided to just tell him. "Well obviously whether you know it or not you worry about it, or else it would not take you so long to answer. It could be sub-consciously… or it could be something that has been bothering you all along." He opened his mouth to speak but she raised her hand asking him to let her continue.

"Funny thing it, I didn't even realize this until tonight… and I can thank Sonny, Carly and Sam for it. They all voiced their concern, well Sam's wasn't concern, that I couldn't handle your life and I would end up walking away or hurt you. I realized that last night you had promised me that you would fight for me and I did not promise the same."

"Elizabeth, I…" Jason went to speak and Elizabeth again raised her hand.

"Let me finish. I want you… I love you. I realize that when you walk out that door and go to work that things could happen. You could get hurt, but you could get hurt if you were in a different business or driving a car. If anything ever happens to either of us, I want to know that we had spent every possible moment together. Not fighting to stay apart or pushing the other away out of fear, emotional or physical. I want to be a family and raise the boys… to wake up in your arms." Her eyes filled with water. "I will never, ever walk away from you again. I promise you that I will fight for you and for us."

He closed his eyes and absorbed her words only to open them seconds later to find her face inches from his. "Can I talk now?"

"No." she stated as her lips found his. She took his bottom lip between hers. He let her take the lead, allowing her to complete her declaration but she caught him off guard when she swung her body so that she was sitting, straddling him. Her kisses got more feverish as her hands held the sides of his head and her tongue dominated his mouth. He needed to pull back for a breath but did not want to pull back. She ground her hips onto his causing a moan to come from both of them and the kiss to break. "Take me upstairs." She ordered.

He instantly complied, raising himself off the couch with her in his arms. She was still straddling him and once he stood she tightly wrapped her legs around his hips. Her mouth was back on his and he was struggling to keep up with her heated kisses and walk at the same time. He made it to the bottom of the steps before she spoke again, "Oh god Jason I need you"

Her words sent him over the edge, he could not hold back. He turned with her and pinned her against the wall at the bottom of the steps with his body. "I need you too" he said then his lips slammed into hers and his tongue shot into her mouth. She loved the fact that she could make him lose control just as he could do the same to her. He moved a hand under her shirt and cupped her breast as he bent his head to kiss her neck releasing a moan from her mouth.

He finally pulled back and turned up the stairs. Once they reached her room she slid down his body and began stripping her clothes off. She was not in the mood for him to slowly undress her. He followed her lead and stripped his clothes off before guiding her back to the bed. He kissed her and wrapped his arm around her back to guide her down onto the mattress. She instantly wrapped her legs around him to show him that she was ready then reached between their bodies and wrapped her hand around him and guided him to her entrance.

Her hand retuned to his back while her other moved to the back of his head and pulled him down so she could kiss him again. He removed both of her hands and gathered them above her head, holding them with one of his hands while the other steadied him on the mattress as he pressed into her almost sending both of them over the edge right then. He began moving with long slow thrusts as his tongue devoured her mouth. She squeezed her thighs, urging him to move faster, he complied.

He released her hands and used his newly free hand to wrap under her waist, lifting her slightly from the mattress. Her arms wrapped around his waist and her fingers grabbed at his skin with each thrust. Her hips moved in rhythm with his and she quickly was starting to come. She closed her eyes to reveal an explosion of colors as she moaned his name. Her crying out his name sent him over the edge, slamming into her one last time releasing himself deep inside her.

They laid together still connected till they both caught their breath. Jason rolled them on their side and pulled the blanket up over them. Within minutes they were both sound asleep.

At about 6 am Jason woke up with Elizabeth curled into his side. Her arm was flung across his stomach. He watched her sleeping for a few minutes before trying to remove her from him so he could get out of bed. He lifted her arm and moved it to her side then shifted his body sideways only to be followed by hers "No." she whispered.

A smile formed on his face knowing that she did not want him to leave. He kissed the top of her head, "I have to go, its after 6."

"Uh uh" she whined. She finally turned her head toward his and squinted her eyes open, "No… stay."

"Yea, but Cam."

She kissed his chest, "I know, it's fine…. Go back to sleep." She flung her arm back over his stomach and within minutes was sound asleep again.


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Jason hadn't fallen back to sleep when Elizabeth had. He laid there thinking about things, what she said last night and what she has said and done over the past month. Of course he had doubts deep down as to whether she would stay or not, with their history there was no avoiding it. Buried deep down with the doubts was also hope, he hoped that she would not give up or get scared and leave or push him away. That hope is what kept him there, coming over almost every day, spending time with Jake and Cameron, holding Elizabeth all night and sneaking out in the morning.

He had been in love before but not like this. When she smiled at him, he felt it all the way to the tips of his toes. When she touched him his skin would burn. When she was not around his heart would ache. Never before had he counted down till when he would be done work so he could go over Elizabeth's.

It was seven-thirty when Jason heard Jakes whimper. He finally moved from Elizabeth and went in Jake's room only to return with him to Elizabeth's bed. She had rolled over onto her back when he had slid out and he sat against the headboard beside her, cradling Jake in his arms. Jason stared into the eyes of his son, after all these years, the things he has done, he was amazed that he is so blessed. He silently thanked god for giving him something so miraculous. A few minutes later he saw Elizabeth's eyes flutter open and she followed quickly with a smile.

She stretched and sat up before quickly realizing she had no clothes on and pulled the blanket up over her forcing a laugh from Jason.

"Don't cover up on my account, actually I like you better when the blanket is at your feet." He said as he reached over and flipped the blanket off.

She shot him a playfully angry look before flipping over to grab her shirt she had dropped the night before on the floor beside the bed. "What if Cam comes in?"

"I know, I just like to make you all flustered… and I like to look at you naked." He flirted.

"Likewise." She said as she crawled over to Jake and Jason, kissing them both before climbing out of bed and heading into the bathroom. A few minutes later she came back out with her hair in a ponytail, wearing her tank top and sweatpants. She went back over to the bed and climbed in next to Jason, rested her head on his shoulder and per Jake's forehead. "This is perfect." She murmured.

Jason nodded "I know" as his eyes met hers.

"Mommy?"

Jason and Elizabeth were quickly brought out of their moment by Cameron who was walking in the room. Jason froze, he was not sure what to do or say. Elizabeth sensed it and moved her hand over his which was resting on her thigh. "Morning sweetheart."

"Jason, you swept at my house last night?" Cameron asked.

Jason apprehensively nodded. "Yep".

"Do you like Jason sleeping here Cam?" Elizabeth interrupted.

"Yessssss" he said jumping up and down.

"Good," Elizabeth said as she gave Jason's hand a squeeze. "Guess what Cam?"

"What?"

"I think Santa came, let's go see." Cameron's face lit up.

The made their way down the steps and Jason took a seat on the couch with Jake still in his arms. He had fallen back to sleep and Jason did not want to put him down. Elizabeth took a seat on the floor with Cameron handing him the presents. Jason and Elizabeth watched as he, one by one, ripped them open. He would stop to play with the presents that he really liked. He spent an extra amount of time with the one Jason had gotten for him. It was a motorized motorcycle. "Cam baby, you can't ride that in the house. You can go outside and ride it after breakfast." She looked at Jason shot him an adoring smile.

Once Cameron was done opening all of his presents Jason stood, "I'm going to go make breakfast." Elizabeth nodded looking at him with sparkling eyes. "Cam, what do you want for breakfast?"

"Pancakes." He replied.

"Ok, pancakes it is." He winked at Elizabeth and placed Jake in his swing before heading to the kitchen to cook.

Elizabeth sat and played with Cameron and his new toys for a few minutes. She was about to get up so she could clean up when Cameron spoke, "Mommy".

"Yes baby?"

"Is Jason my daddy now?"

She was caught off guard. She expected that question eventually but not so soon, not today. "Do you want him to be?"

He gave a shallow nod.

"Tell you what, why don't you think about it Cam. If you decide that you want him to be then you can ask him, ok?" she said cautiously. "Now let's go eat."

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Lucky rolled onto his stomach and was instantly awake. The pain in his abdomen was excruciating. How could one punch make his abs feel like there was a ten thousand pound weight on them. He was ready to fight Jason but was not prepared for how strong of a punch he can throw. He looked at Sam sleeping next to him and saw the large swollen bruise on her cheek. Apparently Sam was not prepared for Elizabeth's strength as well. Everything had gotten so out of hand. His anger was uncontrollable.

After laying in bed for twenty minutes his mind was made up. He got out of bed, took a shower and packed a bag. When he turned to walk out of the bedroom Sam sat up in bed. "Lucky! What are you doing?"

"I'm leaving again, I don't think I am going to come back this time. This town, Jason and Elizabeth are worse then a pill for me. They will be the end of me."

"Lucky, don't say that. Stay… let me help you."

"Damnit Sam, don't you get it? I can't do this anymore!"

"Let me come with you then, at least for a little while. The show does not start taping again till the middle of January." Sam said as she jumped out of bed.

Lucky shook his head.

She walked over to him "Lucky, I can't stay here either. I need to get away, even if it is just for a little while. I want to come with you."

"You don't even know where I am going."

"I don't care where." She stated simply. He left the bedroom and she followed. "If you say no then I will follow you anyway."

"Fine, lets go." He was tired of fighting with everyone and Sam seemed to be on his side, even if she did have her own agenda in the end.

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After breakfast Elizabeth sat on the porch drinking her coffee as Jason showed Cameron how to ride his motorcycle. She smiled as she hugged a blanket around her shoulders. She loved that Cameron and Jason were so comfortable together. Deep down she knew that Cameron wanted Jason to be his father and Jason wanted it as well. They had not really sat down and discussed it but Jason already has been treating his as though he was his own son. Once Cameron was comfortable steering the bike Jason flipped it up to high speed and Jason had to run to keep up with him. Elizabeth laughed and thought to herself that life doesn't get much better.

They spent their day playing with Jake and Cameron, with their new toys. Jason and Cameron played trains and almost got Jake to crawl. As he did with breakfast, Jason cooked dinner. He made spaghetti and taught Cameron how to twirl the pasta in his fork. Jake sat in his high chair eating pureed baby food and cheerios. After dinner they watched a Chuggin' Charlie video together where Jake and Cameron passed out.

Once the boys were tucked in their beds Jason and Elizabeth returned to the Livingroom and cleaned up the toys. Jason sat on the floor and piled the toys under the tree. Elizabeth picked up a few stray pieces of wrapping paper and took them into the kitchen to throw them away. When she returned Jason grabbed her hand as she walked past him. She smiled down at him, he was sitting on his knees in front of the tree.

He looked up to meet her eyes, "You know, I haven't given you your present yet."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

He looked up to meet her eyes, "You know, I haven't given you your present yet."

Elizabeth stood in the Livingroom, her hand in Jason's and looked deep into Jason's eyes, "Jason, you didn't have to get me anything… you being here is enough."

"I know, and being with you and the boys is better then anything money can buy." He said sincerely. His hand was securely locked on hers, holding her in place. "So you don't want a present… I could return it." He teased.

She laughed, "No that's okay… I do! I just feel bad though because I didn't get you anything. I looked so many times but you are a hard man to shop for Mr. Morgan."

He smiled, "Like I said, no gift compares to the one you have already given me." She sat on the coffee table in front of him and he continued. "That night when you showed up at the Penthouse you saved me… I lost count how many times you actually saved me, emotionally and physically. You have given me so much. I had know hat I loved you for a long time but it was that night that I realized that I was in love with you."

Jason still had her hand in his. With his free hand he reached into his pocket and she saw his hand had come out with a small object. His hand began shaking as he swung one of his legs around to stand up and at the same time flipped his hand around to reveal the object in his palm. It was that moment that Elizabeth realized that he was not going to stand up, he was kneeling on one knee in front of her and he had just revealed a petite band with multiple diamonds. Suddenly she had butterflies and started shaking as well.

"Elizabeth" his voice cracked when he said her name. "I can" he cleared his throat, "I cannot put into words how much I love you. I do not know how or why I have been so fortunate to have you in my life and love me the way you do." He looked down to their joined hands and a tear ran down his face. She already had tears steadily flowing from her eyes.

His eyes met back with hers and he continued, "I look at you and I know, without a bit of doubt, that I want to spend my life with you. I want to wake up with you every morning, come home to you and the boys in every night and fall asleep with you in my arms. I want to make you smile…" his lip quivered and he took a deep breath. "Elizabeth, will you marry me?"

His hand was still in front of her holding the ring as an offering. She looked at the ring then looked at him. She brought her free hand to her face to wipe the tears away then reached and wiped his away. Her hand lingered on his cheek and she leaned in and brushed her lips against his. Her lips remained on his while she was attempting to gather herself, but he grew impatient and pulled back. "I need you to answer me before my heart leaps out of my chest."

Her left hand moved from his cheek next to his hand holding the ring. Her palm was down, inviting him to place the ring on her finger as her head started nodding. "I love you so much, yes…" she said as he slid it on her finger and she slid off the table onto his lap. He fell back from his knee onto his butt and she sat across his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. She broke down as did he and they cried in each other arms, repeating countless times that they loved each other.

They sat there for over twenty minutes, neither of them wanting to move. He finally flung his body back on the floor and took a deep breath. As he lay with his back on the floor, she continued sitting between his legs and looked down at the ring he had slipped on her finger. He watched her admiring her new ring from under his eyelids. It was a platinum band with diamonds almost all the way around it and a good size emerald cut diamond in the middle. "Do you like it?" he finally asked in a soft voice.

She nodded and turned to look at him, "It's stunning… perfect." Her eyes sparkled as he brought himself back up to a sitting position with her. "Jason, did you think I was going to say no?"

His shoulders formed a slight shrug, "Let's just say that it wouldn't be the first time." He joked, attempting to lighten the conversation. He was emotionally drained and could not handle any more.

She smiled. The other times had been because of Jake, she wasn't sure if it was what he had really wanted and she was not about to marry someone that did not want her… no matter how much she wanted him. She needed to know that he wanted her. This time he asked, it was about them, just them. She brought her hand and cupped his face. She stared at him for a minute, gazing deep into his eyes.

Jason suddenly was on fire. He swung his legs around so he was again on his knees then guided her back till she was laying on the floor and straightened her legs. He swung a knee over her hips so that he was now straddling her. His fingers started on the buttons of her sweater and he curled his back to bring his lips to hers. She reached her arms around his waist, grabbed the bottom hem of his t-shirt and quickly pulled it. He sat up, helping her remove his shirt as he finished with the buttons on hers. She was wearing a bra with a clasp in the front so he quickly flicked it. She slightly raised off the floor so he could remove her sweater and bra completely.

Eagar to feel her warm skin with his he laid on top of her, shifting part of his weight to his arm beside them. She felt that he was already completely aroused through their pants and rolled her hips under him so he would know she wanted him as bad as he wanted her. His mouth found her neck where he sucked and nibbled on her spot causing a soft moan from her throat. He trailed kisses to her breasts where he took a peak in his mouth, gently sucking and nibbling as his tongue flicked the tip. Her hands moved to the back of his head, holding him there and arching her body to his mouth. The feeling was almost enough to send her over the edge. His body slid past her hips and over her thighs then her knees. He trailed kisses down her stomach and stopped at the waistband of her jeans, tugging on it so he could kiss as far down as he could.

His hand moved to the button and zipper on her jeans. He moved his body so he could remove her jeans and panties before quickly returning to his position, this time between her knees. He placed a hand on her hip and bent his head to kiss her inner thigh while his other hand trailed up the other side. Her body instantly let out a long moan when his tongue flicked her bud and he entered her with his finger. She arched her back and reached her hand to the back of his head as his tongue and finger quickly sent her over the edge. He felt that she was there already, sped up his pace and tilted his head to watch her. She rolled her head back and let out one more long moan as the last wave rushed over her trembling body.

Her eyes were closed and her body still paralyzed when she felt Jason's mouth on her again, this time he had returned his lips and tongue to her neck. He trailed kisses up her neck and traced his tongue over her ear lobe. It was then that she realized that Jason had removed his pants. She wasn't sure when and really didn't care. His erection teased her entrance and her hands moved to his head, pulling his mouth on top of hers. She eagerly kissed him and rolled her hips. He pulled back from the kiss and grabbed a handful of her hair, holding her head in place. Her eyes met his and her hands hooked around his lower waist. He kissed her one last time before pulling back, meeting her eyes once again with his and pushing himself just inside her entrance. Her eyes begged for more, her hips thrust up under his pushing him in slightly more but his body was not budging. He held himself over her in that position for what felt like forever to Elizabeth, never moving his eyes from hers. She wanted to flip him over and take control but his strength was too much for her and she was pinned, unable to move.

He finally pushed completely in, fast and deep. Her eyes closed and she let out a moan. "No, Elizabeth… look at me." He whispered. When she finally complied he placed a light kiss on her lips and locked his eyes on hers. He began moving, almost completely pulling out of her before quickly pushing back in. Her fingertips bent to more of an angle sending her nails into his skin. He let out a moan and sped up his pace. His eyes moved from hers to kiss her and run his tongue along her lips before return to their position locked on hers. They watched each other as they both moaned the others name and released together.

They lay there, eyes still locked as their breathing steadied. Once stead, he picked her up and carried them to bed.

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I feel like I am turning Jason into some mushy wuss but don't worry, he will be back to the gun toting mob enforcer soon.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Elizabeth and Jason were laying in bed on their side, facing each other. After carrying her up there he had lit a fire and they had just been laying there since.

"You know, when this gets out the shit is going to hit the fan." Jason half joked.

"Can I tell Carly?" she asked with a devilish smile.

He nodded. "Seriously though, it is already getting around that Jake is mine, once news about us gets out, that puts you and Cam in more danger."

"I have complete confidence in your ability to protect our family."

"You may have another guard on you and the boys. If this is where you want to live then I need to change some things here."

"So… does this mean I don't have to pay my rent this month?" she laughed, attempting to lighten the conversation. She noticed that he did not find it funny, he wanted to have this conversation. "Yes, Jason, I want to stay here. The Penthouse is nice but here there is a yard for the boys."

"I figured you would want to stay here. Maybe we can even add on, maybe a game room for my pool table." He smiled briefly and quickly became serious again. "I will have Max get on the security stuff right away. The sooner the better."

"Whatever you need to do Jason."

"I hate that my life is so dangerous, unfortunately, whether I want to or not I cannot leave the business. It would be more dangerous to leave. I am going to step back more though and try to distance myself from dangerous situations." He trailed his hand down her arm and took her hand in his. "I don't want to lose this."

"Neither do I" she said leaning forward and placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

"Back to your rent comment… don't worry about money. I doubt that you want to hear this but I have more then we can ever spend. Since we are getting married, its your money too." He could tell from her expression that this conversation was starting to make her uncomfortable. She was chewing on her lower lip.

"I know." She forced a smile, "I will try… money has always been so tight."

"I understand it all will take a little while to get used to but I want you to be able to go buy new clothes or toys for the boys… a new car… if you want a bigger house we can buy and move to a bigger house. It is just money."

She nodded.

He took a deep breath, "If we are getting married there is one more thing… Cameron." She grinned at the mention of Cameron. "I want to adopt him."

Elizabeth's eyes watered at the thought, "You know, this morning he asked me if you were his daddy now. I asked him if that was what he wanted."

"Wha… What did he say?" he asked nervously.

She released her hand from his and placed it on his cheek "Let's just say that you want each other. When he is ready he will talk to you about it. I know that is a lot on a little boy but I can see it in his eyes. He loves you… idolizes you." She brushed her lips against his before moving her hand from his cheek and wrapping it around his waist. She scooted closer to him and snuggled her head against his neck.

For a while she laid there thinking about how much had changed in the 24 hours. Part of her told her that she was crazy for taking the jump with Jason. That same part reminded her that they were supposed to be taking things slow. Fortunately, that part of her was so small. She knew that he was who she wanted to be with. She had never been so certain of anything before. Sure she had married Lucky and Rick before, but this was different. She couldn't quite place it, maybe it was the butterflies she got when she thought of him, the dreams and daydreams she has about them or it could have been that when she was not with him working or if he is working, she did not feel whole… even if he left her side for ten minutes she missed him.

She could feel that he was asleep and within minutes drifted off as well to dream about Jason.

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"Morgan." Jason said in a groggy voice. His phone had rang twice in the last five minutes. He finally got out of bed and answered it.

"Jason, I need you to meet me at the warehouse as soon as possible. We have a situation that needs our immediate attention." Sonny said.

Jason sat up in bed, "Is there a problem."

"We will talk about it when you get here. When will that be?"

"Umm… I will be there within the hour."

---------

"Which kind of pop tart, strawberry or chocolate?" Elizabeth asked as Jake pulled on her stray hairs that had escaped from her bun. She moved Jake from her hip and placed him in his high chair.

"Chocolate." Cam replied moving to sit in his seat at the table.

She reached into the cabinet and caught a glimpse of her ring as it sparkled from the morning sun that peaked through the window. It was more stunning in the daylight. A smile formed on her lips as she pulled the box from the cabinet and she pushed them down in the toaster.

A few minutes later she was sitting at the table. Cameron was eating his pop tarts and she was drinking her coffee as she fed Jake some baby pears and cheerios. She turned her gaze to the doorway where Jason was standing. He was wearing his gray sweatpants and no shirt. She blushed and looked back to Cameron. "Cam, look who is awake."

Cameron turned and saw Jason walking into the kitchen. Jason had seen her blushing and thought that he would tease her about it later. "Morning." Jason said making his way around the table kissing them each on the tops of their heads.

Jason poured himself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter, he smiled watching them… his family.

"Jason, I'm going to go get Jake changed and ready to go… can you help Cam get dressed? I can't be late for work again."

He nodded. A few minutes later he was upstairs helping Cameron into his clothes for the day as Cameron was telling him about his friends at daycare. "…And Colin, he is mean… he took Joey's train so Joey hit him."

"Did he hit him back?" Jason asked

"Yep, they got in time out. Then Colin's dad was mad when he took him home." Cameron hesitated. "Jason… are you Jake's daddy?"

"Yes."

Cameron had a puzzled look on his face "But…" he hesitated and Elizabeth appeared in the doorway. She was in her scrubs and had Jakes coat on already.

"Ready Cam?" she asked. She noticed a little tension in Jason's eyes. "Is everything ok?"

He nodded, "Everything is great."


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

"What's up Sonny?" Jason said as he approached Sonny.

"One of our shipments were intercepted." Sonny handed him a paper documenting what was in the shipment. "Someone is trying to make a point. With Alcazar gone his property is available and it looks like someone is looking to move in on our territory. Do you think it could be Johnny Z?"

Jason shook his head and ran his pointer finger across his bottom lip, "I don't think so, for some reason I believe his word."

"I need you to find out who is behind this." Sonny ordered. "Set up a meeting for us to meet with Skye, she controls Alcazars holdings… if she is not behind this then she may know who is."

Jason nodded as they started walking out of the warehouse.

"Are you ok? I heard about what happened outside after the wedding." Sonny asked.

"Yea, Lucky is an asshole but hopefully he got the hint, I'm not going to be so nice next time."

"And Elizabeth?"

Jason smiled, "She hit Sam, pretty hard." He said almost proudly.

Sonny laughed, "Maybe you two are perfect together."

"Umm, just to let you know Sonny, we are engaged." Jason stated awkwardly.

Sonny's eyes widened, "Wow, you do move fast, damn."

"We've been friends for close to ten years, that's not fast Sonny."

Sonny nodded, "Well you are like a brother to me Jason, I want to see you happy and wish you the best." He suddenly flashed a dimpled smile, "Can I tell Carly."

Jason smiled and shook his head, "You guys are funny… Elizabeth already asked if she could."

"Well, let's see who gets to her first."

---------

"Robin?" Elizabeth called as Robin stepped off the elevator. "They need you for a consult in 532."

Robin walked up to the nurses station. "Thanks… oh and Em told me we are having a girls night out tomorrow night. I can't wait, I need one!"

"Me too, it has been way too long." She replied as she was Emily walking up out of the corner of her eye. "Hey Mrs. Cassadine, we were just talking about Jakes tomorrow night."

"Yea, I can't wait. This week has been so busy that it will be nice to get a night out." Emily said with a sigh. "I still need to go shopping for honeymoon clothes."

"Yea, why are you waiting to leave on your trip till the 2nd?" Robin asked.

"Well, everything happened so quick it was hard to get off work, plus with Christmas and Spencer and all that… it just made sense to wait a week." Emily explained.

Robin made her famous 'that makes sense' face. "How were both of your Christmases?"

Before Elizabeth could answer Emily went on and on talking about Spencer and all of the presents that Santa had brought him. "How about Cameron and Jake?"

"Oh they both got so much, Jason… err.. Santa got Cam a motorcycle, that was the highlight of his day.

Before Liz could go on Epiphany walked over and cleared her throat to make her presence known. "Do you have the chart for the patient in 532?" Robin asked.

Elizabeth turned to retrieve the file and handed it to Robin. A screech escaped Emily's mouth. "ELIZABETH!!!" Elizabeth turned instantly red knowing that Emily had just spotted her new piece of jewelry. Robin looked curiously at Emily.

"What am I missing?" Robin asked.

Emily grabbed Elizabeth's left hand. "Is this…?" Elizabeth's mouth formed a huge grin as she nodded. "Jason proposed!"

"Yes, he did." She replied as Emily pulled her into a hug.

"Congratulations." Robin said. "You will have to fill me in on all the details tomorrow night." She looked over to Epiphany before heading off for her consult.

Elizabeth looked back to Emily who was looking at her with tears in her eyes. "So tell me about it, what happened, what did he say?"

"It was perfect… I don't really know what else to say, I am just so happy Em." As if on cue, the elevator opened and Jason appeared. He could tell from the look on Emily's face that Elizabeth had told her the news.

"Jason… I am so happy for you" Emily said rushing up to him and pulling him into a hug. He looked at Elizabeth over Emily's shoulder and met her eyes with his. Emily pulled back from the hug "It is about time!"

"Thanks Em." He said then walked over to Elizabeth. "Can you take a lunch?"

Her face fell "I wish I could. We are so short staffed because everyone took off today. Rain check… dinner?"

"I'll get Spinelli to watch the boys."

She smiled "Okay, I'll call you… hopefully I won't be stuck here too late." She leaned forward wanting to kiss him goodbye but remembered that Epiphany was on the other side of the desk behind her so she settled for a wink.

He turned to walk away "See you Em" he stopped and turned back "Oh, I almost forgot… I told Sonny and I think it is a race to see which of you gets to tell Carly."

Emily and Elizabeth both laughed, "It may be safer if he does anyway." Emily said. "He can handle her, kind of."

Jason smiled, entered the elevator, his eyes were locked on Liz till the doors closed.

"This ought to be interesting." Emily joked.

"I know." Elizabeth replied.

---------

"Sonny!" Carly said storming into his office.

"Carly, don't you freaking knock?" he asked sounding annoyed.

She put her hands on her hips, "Michael told me that for Christmas you got him a dirt bike… are you crazy? Where is he going to ride that thing, he is too small still. He is going to hurt himself."

"Calm down! He won't be riding it alone. I told him he can only ride with an adult around. Besides it's a mini dirt bike, it doesn't go as fast." She stated.

"Oh, is that supposed to make me feel better?" she asked sarcastically.

Sonny sat back in his chair and took a deep breath. "Is that all you came here for Carly, I'm busy."

"Sonny, you can't keep doing this… you have to talk to me before you buy him something like that."

"Fine!" she turned to leave his office, he flashed a dimpled smile "Oh Carly, did you hear the good news?"

She stopped and turned, "No, what news?"

"Looks like Jason and Elizabeth are engaged."

Her jaw dropped before she started laughing, "Yea right, who told you that?"

"Jason."


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

After work Elizabeth called Jason. He told her that Spinelli would be at her house at 7 to watch the boys and told her to meet him at the Penthouse. She wanted to look nice for him tonight so she wore a simple little black dress cut low in the front and back, when she put her coat on the dress disappeared beneath it. She had a feeling that they would be having dinner at the Penthouse so she didn't care. She arrived at his place and knocked on the door.

After a minute he finally opened, "You know, you don't have to knock on my door… you can just come in."

She tilted her head up and met him for a kiss. "I know, its not my place though, I don't want to just barge in your house."

He shook his head "Everything ok with Spinelli?"

"Yea, Cam loves him, he was so excited when I told him Spinelli was coming over to baby-sit… he calls him Nelli." She reached for the buttons on her coat. "So what are we doing tonight?"

"I don't know, there were some work things that came up so I didn't really have the chance to plan something like I hoped, I was thinking we can just go out to dinner." She removed her coat and he swallowed hard before stuttering out "Or… or we can order in. That dress, wow… you look amazing."

She smiled but ignored his comment "You know, its starting to flurry outside." She walked over to the door to the balcony and looked outside. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her stomach. "It looks so beautiful falling from up here."

He spun her around to face him, "Doesn't even compare to you."

She smiled then stepped back and looked him up and down. "Me? Do you have any idea what you do to a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, or what they do to me?" She bit her lip "Or what you do to me?" she paused. "You know, I'm not really hungry yet."

His hand ran over her shoulders that were covered by a thin strap that held the dress on. He realized this and picked the straps up in his fingertips. He ran his finger along them then pulled them over the edge of each shoulder and began trailing kisses along both shoulders. He released the straps and with one shift of her hips the dress slid off her. At that moment he saw that she had nothing on under the dress. "You have some catching up to do" she said reaching for his belt. He quickly tugged his t-shirt off before finally finding her lips with his. He tried to deepen the kiss but she pulled back. She had him on fire. Once his belt was unbuckled she held on to each end of it and guided him to the couch before sliding it out of his pants.

She quickly removed his jeans and pushed him back on the couch. She kneeled on the floor between his legs and he knew what she was about to do. "Elizabeth, I don't think I can…" before he could finish she took him in her mouth.

His head flew back on rested on the rear of the couch as he let out a long drawn out moan. His hand moved to the back of her head and grabbed a handful of her hair. "Elizabeth, you have to st-stop" he cried. It seemed that his words made her move faster. He finally pulled her back and she looked up at him, giving him a wicked smile. He reached his hand and grabbed her wrist, pulling her onto his lap. She positioned her knees on either side of his hips and before he could move she lowered herself onto him. Her lips found his as he shifted his hips up below her so that he could enter her deeper. She sighed against his lips. His tongue thrashed against hers as she started moving above him. His hands held her hips and guided her. His hips rose each time she slammed her hips down on him. She broke the kiss, tilted her head back and arched her back as she let out a long moan. He felt that she was close as was he and he guided her fasted and harder till they both cried out each others names.

Elizabeth fell forward and wrapped her arms around Jason's neck. She trailed kisses along his jaw line till she met his mouth.

"Jason, what the hell were you think…OH MY… EWWWWWWWWW!!"

Carly came storming into the Penthouse. She stood there like a deer caught in the headlights.

"CARLY!" Jason screamed. Elizabeth pressed her body against Jason's so all Carly could see was her back and she placed her face on his shoulder trying to hide from Carly, not that she could.

"Uhhh… ummm… I'm going to go out in the hall." Carly said running out the door before he could tell her to just leave.

Elizabeth leaned back and Jason saw that her face was a dark shade of crimson. Before Jason could apologize for Carly Elizabeth started laughing. "I guess Sonny told her. I don't think I have ever seen her so speechless."

"I'm sorry, I should've locked the door." Jason said.

"I think she learned her lesson, maybe she will knock next time. Go figure, I knock and she doesn't." She got up and went over to where her dress was laying on the floor. She walked back over to Jason with his t-shirt in her hand as he was pulling his pants back on. He reached for his shirt and she pulled it behind her back tilting her head up for a kiss before she gave it to him.

"I'm sorry about Carly."

"Stop apologizing for her." She said as she walked toward the bathroom. Once she disappeared she went over and opened the door. Carly was standing in the hallway mumbling something to herself.

"What the fuck do you want Carly?" he asked as she peeked around him before walking past him.

"I want to know what the hell you think you are doing? Getting married?" She asked abruptly.

"Carly, I have been through this with you before. Stay OUT OF IT!" he yelled.

"Jason, I am your best friend, I am only looking out for you and this gold digging goody two shoes is taking advantage of you."

"Carly…"

"But Jason, she is using you!"

He ran his hand across his forehead and took a deep breath, "Carly, you should leave now. It obviously doesn't matter what I say or what I want."

"Jason she has you fooled."

"Do I Carly?" Elizabeth asked standing with her hands on her hips. "Tell me, how am I using him, I just want to know exactly what it is that I am doing here."

"You know, you may have everyone else fooled with that _'I'm Elizabeth, I'm an angel'_ thing, but I know better."

"I never said that I was perfect Carly. I love Jason and to be honest, I don't care if you ever accept it but I am not going to fight with you for the rest of our lives. So is there anything else you want to say or accuse me of because after this I don't think I am really going to talk to you anymore… unless by some miracle you get it in your thick head that me and Jason are happy."

Carly turned to Jason, "We aren't done talking about this." Then she turned to the door.

"Yes we are." Jason replied as she walked out the door.

"Elizabeth walked over to Jason and wrapped her arms around him, "That didn't go too bad." She laughed. "I'm hungry now."

---------

A man stood placing a box next to a brick wall. It was a good sized box and had a switch on the side. He flipped the switch and turned away from it and exited the building he was in. Twenty seconds after he exited the building he sat on a bench overlooking the harbor. Two minutes later he turned as the building he had just exited exploded.

Satisfied, he stood from the bench and pulled his phone from his pocket. When he heard a voice on the other line he spoke "It's done." He quickly flipped his phone closed and walked away.


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Elizabeth woke up to the sound of Jason grunting a curse into his phone. He was sitting on the edge of the bed with his hand rubbing his forehead. He ended the conversation and quickly dialed another number.

"Spinelli, when you get this call me right away!" he flipped the phone close and went to the other side of the room to get dressed. Elizabeth could tell that something was wrong. He turned around and saw that she was watching him.

"There is a problem, I have to leave. I'm sending an extra guard with you and the boys for the day. I will call you when I have the chance."

Her stomach suddenly turned into a knot. "What happened?"

"I don't want you to worry until I know more."

"Jason, don't do that to me. If it is something you can tell me, then tell me." She pleaded.

He took a deep breath. "There was an explosion overnight."

"What! Where?" she sat up in bed, pulling the sheets with her to cover her naked body.

"One of our warehouses on the docks. I need you to be careful today. Make sure the guards are with you and the boys at all times, I don't know the situation yet so it may not be anything." She knew that it was definitely something by the look on his face.

She nodded. "Please be careful Jason."

He walked over to the bed and leaned down to lightly kiss her. "I will, you be careful too. I love you."

"I love you too."

Once Jason left she could not fall back to sleep. She found herself getting nervous but kept reassuring herself that Jason would keep himself and them safe.

---------

Jason had not heard back from Spinelli so he went to the Penthouse and picked him up on his way to Sonny's. Sonny was in his Livingroom with Max waiting for them.

"What's the situation?" Jason asked.

"All we know is that it happened around 1 am. Spinelli, I need you to check all surveillance footage in the area for the last 24 hours. What did you find on the intercepted shipment?" Sonny asked.

"The Jackal requires a little more time. I have a few leads. I will get on it instantaneously." Spinelli immediately set his laptop up and began punching keys.

"I need results!" Sonny shouted at him.

Jason stood with his arms crossed, "Who do you think?"

"It could be any of our enemies that want to prove a point. We need to consider anyone interested in Alcazars holdings suspects. It could even be Skye, although I don't think she would do something like this." Sonny said.

"We do have a meeting set up with her for this morning." Max added.

"The PCPD are all over the place. They responded very quick to the scene." Sonny said, Jason raised an eyebrow.

"How quick?"

"Before I even got a call from our guys down there the PCPD had responded. There was no one in that warehouse but we had men in the area." Sonny said.

Max took a deep breath, "I talked to Eddie who was on shift, he said that he heard the explosion and within three minutes the PCPD were there. He had been inspecting the area to see if anyone was around when they arrived. That is when he called me."

"Max, I need you to send extra guards to Elizabeth's and Carly's house. Head down to the PCPD and see what they found, it is my warehouse so I am sure they will want to talk to me about suspects but tell them that I am unavailable till later this afternoon. I want to know who did this before I talk to them." Sonny ordered. "Someone wants to start a war and I need to know who it is!" Max left Sonny's Livingroom and got right to work on his duties.

"Ummm Stonecold… Godfather, I think I have revealed the man behind this massive explosion." Spinelli said waving them over. Jason and Sonny bent down looking at his computer screen as Spinelli zoomed and modified the face to see a clearer picture. "Unfortunately with the darkness that is the best image of the evil doer my services can provide."

"At least we have a general description but can you keep working on that… see if you can find an alternate shot." Sonny said. Jason stood silent. Although his face wasn't clear, he knew that build. The lump in his throat grew and his mind started racing. He shrugged the thought from his head, he wouldn't do this, he couldn't… not alone. His thoughts were interrupted by Sonny's phone ringing. Sonny left the room but Jason caught the beginning of the conversation and could tell it was Carly calling to see why extra guards were outside her house.

Once Sonny was out of sight Jason sat down next to Spinelli. He told him who he thinks it could be and told Spinelli to check bank accounts, cell phone records, tolls… anything he can find.

"But Stonecold… do you really think that this could be the work of…"

Sonny reentered the room. Jason shot Spinelli a look to end the conversation. He wondered why Jason didn't want to tell anyone else but figured that Sonny would just tell him it is paranoia.

--------

A few hours later Sonny and Max were sitting in Skye's Livingroom, formerly Alcazar's Livingroom. "I heard about your little problem on the docks last night."

"Who has made offers for Alcazars Port Charles holdings?" sonny straight out asked.

"I cannot reveal that to you Sonny. I will say that a lot of people and organizations have." She chuckled. "Both Luke and Rick offered to broker deals… people have come out of the woodwork." Sonny made a mental note to add both of them to the list but knew that neither of them had the resources to pull it off, at least not alone.

"I want to help you Skye, I think we could develop a mutually beneficial business relationship here." Sonny offered.

Skye smiled. "That's what they have all said. I haven't made my decision what I am going to do yet. I will let you know when I do. I must get back to Lila Rae. You gentlemen can see yourselves out." She exited the room. Sonny turned to Max who had a sly smile. He shook his head thinking what a rookie she was as he placed a bug behind her painting on the wall. He adjusted the picture to be sure it was level and they left the house.

---------

"Mommy, can I ride my motorcycle?" Cameron asked.

Elizabeth rubbed the top of his head, "Not right now baby. It's snowing a little outside and I cannot take Jake out in it. Maybe later."

Disappointment showed on his face, "Maybe when Jason gets home?"

"Maybe." Elizabeth shifted. "Cam, can mommy talk to you for a minute?"

He nodded his head.

"Remember when we talked the other day and you asked if Jason was your daddy?" he nodded again. "Is that what you want?"

"Why is he Jake's daddy and not mine? Jake can't talk so how can he ask him?"

She sat for a minute and thought about how to answer that. "It is something that you will understand better when you are older. What I will say is that Jason loves you very much and wants to be your daddy. You are special because you get to choose if you want him to be your daddy. Do you want him to be your daddy?"

"Yea." He stated simply. "I like him…" he paused, "Is he going to leave too though?"

"What do you mean baby?"

"Like my udder daddy."

Elizabeth wanted to break down in tears. It broke her heart to hear Cameron say that, but she held it together for him. "No Cam, Jason will not leave you. I promise you."

"Then why did he go?"

"He left because… because he was sad. He loved you so much but he couldn't live with us anymore. He did not leave because of anything you did." She pulled him onto her lap deciding to get off the subject of Lucky as quick as possible. "You know what I think?" He shook his head. "I think you should tell Jason that you want him to be your daddy… because guess what?"

"What?"

She leaned into his ear, "He told me he wants to be your daddy… and he is going to move in here. He is going to be here every day, very soon. Do you want that?"

"Yeah!" he cheered.

"Ok, give mommy a hug." He twisted around and wrapped his arms around her neck. "Now lets go feed you and your brother lunch."


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Jason finally arrived home as Elizabeth was getting ready for her night out with the girls at Jake's. "Hey, how did everything go today… I worried a little when I didn't hear from you." She was standing in front of the mirror pinning her hair up.

He kissed her temple and sat on the bed and leaned forward placing his elbows on his knees. "It went, we uhhh, we don't know who is behind it yet."

She turned and stared at him for a minute. "But you have a pretty good idea who it is, don't you?" He sat in silence. "I guess you don't want to tell me, it's ok."

He was amazed that she could see right through him. The footage that Spinelli had shown him this morning kept flashing through his mind and he was trying to figure out if it was his mind playing tricks on him. For Elizabeth's sake he hoped that is the case. Hopefully Spinelli will have the information for him soon.

"It's not that I don't want to tell you, I don't want you to worry. I will handle it when we have a positive ID on the person or people hat did this… but please remember that you need to keep the guards with you tonight." She nodded. "Who is going tonight?"

"I think it is just Em and Robin." She went and stood in front of him. "I can tell that you are uneasy with me going out. Do you want me to postpone it?"

"No, go out, just make sure you keep George with you at all times." He said taking her hands in his.

She smiled, "Well we don't want him too close, he may not like to hear our girl talk too much."

"Girl talk huh? So man bashing?" he joked.

She sat on his lap and wrapped her arm around the back of his neck. She leaned in and trailed kisses along his neck to his ear and whispered "No bashing from me… I am going to tell them how wonderful you are… but they already know that." She kissed along his jaw line and finally found his mouth. She kissed him for a minute before he pulled back.

"You better go before I make you late again, Emily will start to get mad if I make you late every time you are supposed to meet her." He said before leaning in to give her one last kiss. "Be careful, I love you."

She stood from his lap, "We will finish this when I get home… I love you too."

---------

"Coleman, a round of tequila for me and my girls" Robin shouted down the bar. He immediately made his way over to them and pulled out 3 shot glasses.

"Here you go ladies, the first one is on me."

Emily held up her left hand, "We are all taken there buddy, no chance of getting lucky with any of us."

He made a fake shocked face "Who me, I would never… especially when I am getting eyed by one of your bodyguards over there." All three of them turned around and laughed. "Who brought the secret service into my bar?"

Elizabeth did not know what to say, so she changed the subject "Lick it, suck it, slam it ladies." The three of them took their first shot. "You might as well just leave that bottle here. Save yourself a trip."

Coleman nodded and made his way to the other end of the bar. Elizabeth jumped off her stool and went over to the jukebox. She put a few bills in and selected a bunch of songs before returning back to her place at the bar.

"So Robin, what is going on with you and Dr. Hottie?" Emily asked and they all laughed.

"I have no idea. We are back to where we were a few months ago, together but trying to figure out what to do as far as a family is concerned. The problem is that if he does change his mind and decide he wants children, I am afraid that it would be because I pushed him so much and not because he truly wants kids." Robin said as Elizabeth poured another shot for them.

"To Patrick growing up." Elizabeth said holding her glass up. They all drank their shots. "How about you Em, how is married life, ready for kids?"

"Absolutely, we are working on it as we speak. Well not at this moment but you know what I mean. I have only been married for a few days but so far it is great. I can't wait to leave for the honeymoon." Emily giggled. "Spencer definitely needs a little brother or sister. Elizabeth, your turn for the hot seat… you aren't pregnant are you."

"Oh yea Em, that is why I am here drinking tequila!"

"Oh, yea… I forgot about that." Emily said starting to feel buzzed. "Just checking, so lets talk about this engagement stuff, when is this wedding?"

"We haven't talked about it yet but if I know Jason, he will tell me to do whatever I want." She smiled, "I was thinking about it though, maybe late spring, early summer."

"Ok, I am officially jealous, you both have perfect relationships and I have a guy with commitment issues." Robin poured more shots.

"Hey, I have to deal with Carly!" Elizabeth screeched out.

"You win." Robin and Emily said in unison. They looked at Elizabeth who appeared to be having a funny thought. "What is so funny missy, spill." Emily said.

Elizabeth laughed, "Funny story… Yeah… you know how Carly doesn't have manners? Well she barged into the Penthouse last night and me and Jason were having a date or alone time, whatever you wanna call it and we were ummm on the couch and… not exactly clothed." Emily and Robin howled with laughter.

"I would've paid to see that, well Carly's face, not you and my brother, ewww."

"Yea, she was actually speechless!"

"How are you going to be able to deal with her the rest of your life?" Robin asked.

Elizabeth laughed. "I'll just have sex with Jason whenever she comes over. Although I don't know when she is going to come over so that will be a lot of sex, I can deal with that. I think that may keep her away. At the very least it will help her to knock or call first." They took another shot.

"S… seriously Liz, you need to stop talking about Jakin… ha… Jason and sex." Emily said.

"I think Emily is flagged already." Elizabeth joked.

"I am not, we have only had four… five… hell whatever. Another round!" Emily picked up her shot glass and tapped it on the counter for Elizabeth to refill, she complied and they all took another shot. "I think that tequila is datered wown… watered wown… watered down." She looked over to George standing by the door. "He Liz, is Mr. Clean our designater driver?"

"Who?" Robin asked.

"The secret serrrrrves guy, over there." Emily pointed to George and almost fell from her stool. Elizabeth shrugged. "Hey Coleman, take our money." Emily yelled across the bar.

Emily pulled out her wallet as did Robin and Elizabeth. Coleman approached them, "No ladies, your tab has been taken care of."

They all looked shocked "By who?" Elizabeth asked.

"Morgan." Coleman answered. "He called a little while ago and informed me that your money is no good and your bill would be covered. He also said that if you still tried to pay me and I took it that I would be found at the bottom of the harbor… well he didn't say that I just assumed that." He smiled at them. "You ladies have a good night."

They stood from their stools and put their coats on, "Sounds like someone is getting lucky tonight." Robin joked.

"He gets lucky every night." Elizabeth blushed as soon as she said it because she realized that George was standing next to her. "Sorry Mr. Clea…. George. Can you dr-dr-drive my friends home?"

"Sure thing Ms. Webber." George stated in an official voice.

---------

Jason was sitting on the couch with Jake in his arms and Cameron beside him watching Chuggin' Charlie. Jake had just fallen asleep and Cameron was starting to rub his eyes. "Hey Cam, why don't we go get you ready for bed."

He nodded his head and they went up the stairs to his room. Jason stopped in Jakes room to place him in his crib first. He returned to Cameron's room and helped him in to his pajamas that had motor cycles all over them. Once dressed Cameron climbed into his bed. Jason kneeled down and covered him with the blankets then reached and flipped on his nightlight. "Night Cam."

"Goodnight… Jason?"

"Yea Cam."

"Can I call you daddy? Will you be my daddy?"

Jason was caught off guard by the emotion he suddenly felt. His eyes filled with tears. "Cameron I would love to be your dad."

Cameron smiled and snuggled into his blanket to find a comfortable spot. Jason bent down and kissed his forehead. "Goodnight Cam, I love you."

"Night daddy, I love you too." Cameron replied as he closed his eyes.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

"Spinelli, tell me you have information." Jason shot into his phone.

"Stonecold, I wish I had better tidings. I have been working all day and have made little advancement. I should have a better update in the morning. The dark underlings have covered their trail well, this was undeniably a well planned assault." Spinelli said. Jason turned when he heard the door close. Elizabeth crossed the room to where he was on the couch.

"Anything on the surveillance photo?" Jason asked cryptically.

"To my detriment I have been unable to further amend its clarity. The Jackal regrets to admit that it is the best I can provide." Jason covered the receiver when Elizabeth bent her head to give him a quick kiss. He returned to his conversation with Spinelli but Elizabeth had other plans.

"Keep looking for alternate footage." Jason said as Elizabeth kneeled in front of him and rubbed her hands on Jason's thighs. He sighed.

"Stonecold, pardon my inquiry, is all well over there in your lair of love? You sound preoccupied."

"I'm fine, what else do you have for me." Elizabeth laughed at Jason's attention to his conversation. He held up his pointer finger to Elizabeth as if to ask her for one minute… one she was not going to give him.

"I have been researching your main suspect and although I am unable to track any cell records, I believe there is a bank transaction from here in Port Charles." Jason suddenly felt Elizabeth's hands move from his thighs to the button and zipper on his jeans. He attempted to remove them but she slapped his hands away. "It appears to be a deposit, however the transaction has yet to be completed in the banking system. I am optimistic that the system..." She tugged on his jeans attempting to pull them down, without success.

"Spinelli?"

"…will be updated by the morning" Spinelli continued.

"Spinelli, I have to go." He flipped his phone closed, grabbed Elizabeth's arm and pulled her onto his lap. "Hey."

"Hey back at you. How is the everything going?"

He chuckled. "I missed most of the conversation so I will have to find out in the morning." He put his hand behind her head and pulled her in to meet his lips. She sunk into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "So how was ladies night out?"

She ran a hand through his hair, "It was fun. We talked about the men in our lives and some other girly stuff. It was nice to spend time with Emily before she leaves… although she got pretty tipsy. George had to drive them home."

"Good, I'm glad he did."

"One good thing about going out just the girls, we never seem to have to pay for a drink. Some incredibly hot guy picked up our tab for us." She said smiling as she leaned in and kissed him, taking his bottom lip between her teeth then moved lower and kissed his chin followed by his neck.

"Oh yea, should I be jealous."

She lifted her head up and looked him in the eyes, "Absolutely."

---------

By the time Emily arrived back at Wyndemere she had sobered up. When she walked in the door she heard voices. Alfred took her coat and informed her that Nicholas was in the study.

She entered the study and found Nicholas, Lucky and Sam talking.

"Hey, I was starting to think that you left us again." She said to Lucky approaching him to give him a hug. She then went over and kissed Nicholas, "Hello my husband." Then sat on the arm of his chair. She purposely did not greet Sam.

"I decided to stay in town." Lucky stated simply.

Emily noticed the tension, it seemed as though Lucky did not want to talk to her. She thought that he must be tired and tossed the thought from her mind. "I never did ask you where you went before when you left. Go anywhere good?"

"No, not really. I drove all over.. Texas… Miami." Lucky replied.

There was an awkward silence in the room, possibly because Sam was there and they all knew that Emily and Sam did not particularly care for each other too much. It also could be because Nicholas had told them that she was out with Elizabeth tonight. Sam finally broke the silence.

"Lucky, we should get going." She stood from her chair and went toward the door.

"I'll talk to you guys tomorrow." Lucky said following her, he stopped at the doorway and said "See ya" then disappeared.

Emily stood from the arm of the chair and looked down at Nicholas, "So what is going on, they seemed strange."

"It is strange. Lucky called wanting to stop by for a visit and when they showed up they did not say much. They had planned on leaving town but he didn't say why they didn't. He didn't seem like himself. It's like he wanted to talk to me about something but changed his mind. I just, I hope everything is ok."

"Yea, even with everything that has happened, I love Lucky, he is one of my oldest friends and I want to be there for him. I know you are related to her but Sam is not a good influence on him. She is only using him to get back at Jason and Elizabeth."

Nicholas stood and pulled Emily into a hug. "I just hope that no one gets hurt."

"Me too."

---------

"Good morning." Jason said as he walked into the bedroom with a cup of coffee. "I figured you may need this."

She sat up and took the cup from his hand, "Thanks. I didn't feel very drunk but I do feel like crap today."

He went to his side of the bed and sat with his back against the headboard. "So I was thinking… I am not going to sell the Penthouse, I'm going to let Spinelli stay there. I can't throw him out on the streets. As long as he works for me I will let him stay there."

"That's very sweet of you."

"Wow, I don't think anyone has every referred to me as sweet." Jason laughed.

"I supposed because they don't know you." She sipped her coffee. "So when do you think we should get married? Do you want a big wedding?"

"I want whatever you want, when you want it. If you wanted to get married tomorrow in Vegas I would go… or if you want to wait and have a big wedding or a small wedding then that is what I want too."

She smiled, "Well I was thinking maybe in the spring or summer, outside and small. Just a few of our closest friends."

"I want you to plan exactly what you want. I have a security guy that will be stopping by with Max later to install a new alarm system."

She nodded. "Am I going to be able to work this? Just make sure I am able to work it, make sure it is not too complicated for dizzy Lizzie."

He laughed as Cameron appeared in the doorway. "Morning buddy."

"Morning I'm hungwy." He said rubbing his eyes.

"I'll get him, you get ready for work." Jason insisted then leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

"You really are sweet you know." Elizabeth said.

He smiled and kissed her again, this time on the lips. "Come on daddy." Cameron whined from the doorway. Jason got up from the bed, picked Cameron up and headed downstairs. Once they left the room Elizabeth got out of bed and started the shower. She suddenly stopped in her tracks when it dawned on her that Cameron had just called Jason daddy. She smiled and tears formed in her eyes, she was finally getting her happy family.

Downstairs Jason was pouring a bowl of cereal when his phone rang. He finished what he was doing and gave Cameron his breakfast before he want to check his missed calls. It was Spinelli. He dialed his number.

"Stonecold… I have it, I found out that…."

Jason interrupted, "No, not over the phone. I will be there as soon as I can."

He hung up his phone, he had a feeling he already knew what Spinelli was going to tell him and it was not going to be good.

--------

Thank you all for the positive feedback. I'm kind of hitting a wall, I know where I want to go with the story but have had a case of writers block. Hopefully a day of shopping will inspire me!


	30. Chapter 30

Just to let you know, the italics are flashbacks. There will be quite a few in the next few chapters.

Chapter 30

Jason walked into the Penthouse and threw his coat over the chair. "Tell me what you got Spinelli."

Spinelli was sitting on the couch and looked as though he had not slept all night. He pounded on the keys for a minute and waved Jason over to the couch. "You were as always accurate Stonecold. It was Lucky."

Jason took a deep breath and listened as Spinelli recounted what he found. He found cell phone records and Spinelli tracked who called him and who he called. The deposit made was obviously payment for the explosion. He had been involved since he left Port Charles. There were a few calls to and from the PCPD, probably about missing work then the next day there were multiple calls to a Miami area number. A day after that there are credit card charges for a hotel in Miami and Spinelli found surveillance footage of Lucky meeting a man in the bar of that hotel. Spinelli was able to ID the man as Joseph "Jose" Perez Jr, the son of Joe Perez Sr, boss of the Perez family in Miami.

Spinelli had yet to figure out how he two originally came in contact. Apparently somehow Lucky had told Sam about the plans because Sam was within him the night of the explosion. Immediately after the explosion Lucky called a phone but was a pre-paid phone and is not traceable.

Before Spinelli could continue Sonny walked in. "So, what's the situation?"

Jason filled him in on everything Spinelli had told him so far. "What about the shipment that was intercepted?" Sonny asked.

"I am unable to answer that at this juncture godfather. I think it is safe to presuppose that they were involved." Spinelli replied.

"Good work Spinelli." Sonny said. Spinelli became giddy at Sonny's compliment. "We still need to find the link between Lucky and the Perez family. If they are looking to move in on our territory, we are ready. Anything on Skye's house? Maybe she is the link."

"I have been monitoring, nothing so far." Spinelli said.

"Jason, meet me at the coffee shop in an hour." Sonny said as he left the Penthouse.

Jason instantly dialed Max to assign additional guards on Elizabeth and the boys.

---------

_Thanksgiving night_

_Lucky was driving, he was not sure where. He picked up his phone and dialed the PCPD. He left messages for both Cruz and Mac that he was taking time off and that he was sorry for the short notice. He did not are if they would hold his job or not._

_By daybreak he was somewhere in North Carolina and his cell phone rang. He recognized the number and figured it was about work so he answered it. _

_"Lucky, what is going on?" the voice asked._

_"Not that it is any of your business but I had to leave town for a little while. How did you find out?" Lucky asked._

_"Word gets around, even to me. When will you be coming back?"_

_"When Morgan and Corinthos are gone, so never." Lucky replied sarcastically._

_"I wouldn't be too sure. Let's just say that there is something going down that will probably ensure them out of Port Charles forever, and hopefully off the planet if you know what I mean." The voice said._

_"Why are you telling me this? What are you involved in?" Lucky asked._

_"No, no… I'm not going to tell you that… unless you are interested in the cause."_

_"So you are calling me to recruit me to help you?"_

_The caller chuckled, "I'm not the army Lucky. I'm just offering you an opportunity. One that will make both of us very happy and wealthy… not to mention Jason and Sonny free. It is a win-win situation and we will both look like the heroes when all is said and done. They will both look like what they really are, cold blooded killers."_

_Lucky sucked in a deep breath while they both sat in silence. The caller finally broke the silence "Lucky, let me give you some time to think about it. I will call you back in one hour." Before Lucky could reply the caller hung up._

_For the next hour he thought about it. His mind was made up to not get involved. He was a detective, he put away the criminals, he was not on of them. He would not stoop to the level of Jason and Sonny. When his cell phone rang he sucked in a deep breath and answered it._

_"Well Lucky, will you be joining me and my associates?" the voice asked._

_Lucky opened his mouth to say no but something came over him, "Yes, Rick, I'm in." He couldn't believe that he had said it but did not correct himself. Deep down he knew that he wanted to._

_"Good, I will set up a meeting for you. Go to Miami and call me on this number when you get there. I'll be checking out of the hospital today." Rick replied and ended the call._

---------

"What's the plan?" Jason asked as he entered Sonny's office.

"I don't know yet. Lucky is being tailed, hopefully that will lead us to his contact here in Port Charles. I can't believe Lucky and Sam are involved in this. Obviously Sam was not involved from the beginning, she must have been a very recent addition."

Jason pulled out the paperwork for everything Spinelli had found and they began setting up scenarios.

---------

_Christmas morning_

_Lucky and Sam got in the car. He started the car and pulled out of the driveway. A mile down the road he pulled over._

_"Sam, there is something I need to tell you. I am not leaving town."_

_"What, then where are we going?" Sam asked._

_"I am involved in something that I think you will not want to be a part of. I am not taking you with me, I am dropping you off at your apartment."_

_Sam raised her eyebrows, "What are you talking about Lucky, what are you involved in?"_

_"Sam, it is best that you do not know, it is dangerous and the people are dangerous."_

_"Come on Lucky, this is me… I think I know a little something about danger. You can trust me." He shook his head. "Lucky, tell me!"_

_"Fine, but you are not going to like it." Lucky continued and told her the plan to help take down the Corinthos organization so the Perez family can move into Port Charles. He and Rick were each getting money to blow up two warehouses within a few days of each other and take out Jason and Sonny. After that they would both disappear and leave Port Charles._

_"Lucky are you insane? I cannot believe that you would get involved with Rick"_

_"I told you that you are not going to like it." Lucky said._

_"They are smart Lucky, they will figure this out and you will be killed." Sam said with a look of worry on her face._

_"I don't care, hopefully we will succeed… if that is the case I will be a very rich man, and happy knowing that the world is free of Jason and Sonny."_

_"How much money are we talking Lucky? You would need enough to live on for the rest of your life."_

_"Millions." Lucky said. Sam instantly injected herself into the plan. She hated Rick but she hated Sonny and Jason more not to mention she was greedy._


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Elizabeth was standing at the nurses station lost in thought. She had called her Grams and asked her to baby-sit Cameron and Jake. Jason had always planned their 'dates' so she decided to plan one for tonight. She had called him and left a voice mail for him to let him know her plans to send the boys out so they could spend time together. It was a unseasonably warm day so hoping that the night would be the same, she was thinking they cold go for a ride on his bike then grab dinner.

Monica approached her and pulled her from her thoughts. "Good afternoon Elizabeth."

"Hey Monica." Elizabeth replied.

"How are the boys doing?" Monica asked.

Elizabeth smiled, "They are great… bonding with Jason, he is wonderful with them. I would love for you to spend some time with them. We should arrange some time for you to come over and see them."

"That would be great. Definitely your house though, I don't think you want to bring them to my house till they are old enough to be warned about Tracey and Edward… not to mention with Luke living there I do not want you to feel uncomfortable."

"Thank you." Elizabeth chuckled.

"How is Jason?" Monica asked sincerely.

"Did Em tell you about us?"

"I am afraid that she has been so busy since the wedding between work, packing and the holidays I have not had time to sit and really talk with her, if everything ok with you and Jason?"

Elizabeth smiled, "Oh yea, its better then ok… we are engaged."

Monica's face lit up, "That is absolutely wonderful. I am so happy for you two, I really, really am." She looked at her left hand and spotted the ring. "Oh my goodness, that ring is beautiful… Congratulations Elizabeth. Be sure to tell Jason I said so."

"I will. I work tomorrow but how about the next day?"

"I work in the morning and can come over after my shift, say one o'clock?" Monica suggested.

"That works for me."

"I feel silly saying this but I don't know where you live."

Elizabeth laughed and picked up a pen. "Here is my address and I put my cell number on there in case plans change or anything."

"Sounds great. Gotta get back to my rounds. It was good seeing you Liz."

"You too Monica."

---------

"Lucky, how have you been?" Cruz said to Lucky as he walked into the PCPD.

"I've been better. How about you?"

"Workin' on this warehouse explosion investigation, I assume you have heard about it. Speaking of work, are you still on leave?" Cruz asked taking a seat at his desk.

"Yes I am still on leave, for now at least. I did hear about the explosion on the docks, any leads?" Lucky asked.

"Nothing yet… What brings you down here, I guess you are not here to return to work?"

Lucky looked over his shoulder and saw Rick walk in to the building. "I uh, I'm here to talk to Mac."

Cruz picked up on a change in Lucky's form. "Everything ok Lucky?" Lucky shrugged. "Well I am here if you need to talk." Cruz said.

Lucky's eyes followed Rick till he left the room, obviously heading toward his office. He quickly cut off his conversation with Cruz and headed to Rick's office. Cruz sat at his desk a little confused. Lucky did not head to Mac's office, instead he headed toward Rick's office. What would Lucky want with Rick?

Lucky entered Rick's office and shut the door behind him.

"How is everything going?" Rick asked.

"So far so good. I do get the feeling that I am being tailed though… maybe it is just paranoia."

"It is quite possibly that Joey is having you tailed to be sure that you are not setting them up. I am sure that they did a background check on you and know you are a detective." Rick assured him.

"And you are a D.A." Lucky shot back.

"So, are you sure we can trust Sam?" Rick asked.

Lucky rolled his eyes "Look, I know the two of you have a past, she is my partner in this, not yours so leave the worrying to me. I just wanted to let you know that we are all set for tomorrow night."

"You could have called me and told me that. Remember that we aren't exactly drinking buddies so you stopping by to see me will raise questions."

Lucky stood from the chair. "Well if anyone asks tell them I stopped by to push you to go after Elizabeth for perjury in Jason's trial."

Rick laughed, "Whatever, we all know that will not happen… Diane would bury us, even I would admit that."

"Whatever, I'll be in touch." Lucky said as he left Rick's office.

---------

"Hey boss."

"What's up Max?" Sonny said into the phone. He was sitting in his office with Jason.

"Not much. Lucky only left his house this morning to go to the bank and he went to the PCPD a little while ago. My guess is to nose around about the explosion."

"See if you can find out from one of or guys on the inside who he talked to."

"I am already on that boss, I am meeting with someone shortly." Max said. "No further information on Sam, she spent the day with Alexis and Kristina."

"Call me when you have more." Sonny hung the phone up and looked up at Jason.

He rubbed his hand on his forehead. "What is your take Jase?"

"I don't know, we have Lucky, the Perez family, the warehouse explosion and the shipment that was intercepted. Whoever the link between them all may not matter. It is obvious that the Perez's are looking to acquire Alcazar's waterfront property and run us out of town at the same time, same thing Zacharra's and Trevor wanted to do and failed. I'm guessing that their next move is going to be another way to try to immobilize us like the explosion and lost shipment did." Jason sucked in a deep breath. "What worries me the most is not what the Perez's are going to do because we can handle them, but what Lucky and Sam are going to do. I know that their motivation here is not purely financial, they want revenge."

Sonny nodded, "Yea, we need to keep the extra guards on Elizabeth and the kids. You need to tell her in case she sees Lucky. She needs to be prepared."

"I will tell her tonight." Jason said standing from the chair. He left Sonny's office and finally listened to the voice mail Elizabeth had left for him hours ago. She was not going to like his response to it, there was no way that the boys were going to Audrey's tonight.

---------

Jason walked in the house to find it dark. He looked up the steps and saw a light peaking through the crack of the door to their bedroom. He climbed the steps and went in. Elizabeth appeared to be getting ready for the date that she had planned. She was wearing a pair of jeans that were extra snug and a pair of boots that came up over them to her calves.

"Hey." He finally said.

"Hey there to you too, I was about to call my other boyfriend to take me out tonight. I hadn't heard from you." She smiled walking over and pulling his head down for a quick kiss.

"Sorry, it was a busy day. I just got your message a little while ago. Did you already drop the boys off at your Grams?" Jason asked.

"Yea, about twenty minutes ago. I was thinking we could go for s ride since it is not too cold out then grab dinner." She said as she pulled her hair back.

"We can't go." He sighed, "And I think we should go get the boys."

Her neck quickly turned so she could look at Jason "What! Why can't we go?"

"We need to keep them here for now, till I know it is safe."

"But the guards are there, they should be fine." She said reassuringly.

"No, I'm sorry, we can't tonight." He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed.

She shook her head. "I've been looking forward to this all day."

"I'm sorry, I would've called earlier but I just got the message. I would just feel better if the boys were here with us tonight."

She put her pins on the dresser, turned and walked out of the room mumbling on her way out, "Fine lets go get them."

He could tell she was upset. By the time he caught up to her downstairs she already had her coat on. "I'm sorry Elizabeth."

"Stop apologizing Jason, let's just go."

She turned toward the door and he grabbed her arm, turning her back to him, "Please don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad Jason, just disappointed." He closed the distance between them and pulled her into a hug but she pulled away from him. "Jason, don't… I don't want to get upset. I don't want Grams or the boys seeing me upset."

"I don't like seeing you upset either."

She looked away from him, "Let's go." She said as she opened the door.


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

They arrived home after a quiet car ride. The only words spoken were from Elizabeth who told Jason that she would just run in and get the boys.

"Did they show you how to use the alarm system?" Jason asked.

Elizabeth nodded, "Come on Cam, lets go get you ready for bed."

Jason held a sleeping Jake and headed up the steps to place him in his crib. A few minutes later Jason went in and kissed Cameron goodnight and headed back downstairs. Elizabeth did not come down.

Jason was about to head up the steps when Spinelli knocked on the door. Jason had called him when Elizabeth was inside Audrey's house getting the boys.

"The Jackal is here for prodigy watch."

Jason nodded and turned up the steps. He went in the bedroom and Elizabeth was sitting on the bench at the end of the bed. "Hey, can we talk?" he asked.

"Go ahead." She replied.

"Not here, come on. Spinelli is here for a little bit we are going to go out." She seemed more annoyed. She sucked in a deep breath and stood up.

In almost a sigh she said "I'll do whatever you want." He took her hand and led her down the steps. "Hey Spinelli."

"Hello maternal one, be assured that the young prodigies are in good hands while you are out."

She forced a smile, "Thanks Spinelli." Jason led her out the door and instead of over to the car he led her to his bike and handed her a helmet. She looked into his eyes, "Look you don't have to do this, we can go for a ride another night."

"I know I don't have to, I want to. Now, get on this bike." He smiled, climbed on the motorcycle and kick started the engine. She couldn't hide her smile as she put on her helmet. He held out a hand and helped her on the back of the bike. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and pushed them under his jacket to keep them warm.

A few minutes later they were riding to nowhere. She loved the smell of his leather jacket and the feeling of the holding him tight as he weaved the bike around on back roads.

He finally pulled the bike over at a small park. As soon as she took the helmet off he grabbed her waist and pulled her to him. Jason dipped his head and kissed her till she pulled back for a breath. He released her, "I forgot how good it felt to have you holding on to me as we ride." He took her hand and led her to a bench. "I need to talk to you about the guards and the people behind the warehouse explosion."

"Jason, I understand, there is a threat. I just need to get used to it. I will be fine."

"No that's not it, well it is, but…" he linked his fingers in hers. "It is who it is."

"Who is it?"

"It is an organization from south Florida that is headed up by a guy named Joseph Perez. But, they have recruited some locals to help with the legwork. So far we know of two but we are still trying to figure out the link between them and the Perez's, there is no way that they went looking to hook up with the Perez's."

"Who?"

"Lucky and Sam." Jason said in almost a whisper.

Elizabeth laughed, "Yea right." She looked at Jason's eyes and saw that he was not kidding. "You are serious, Lucky… involved in a bombing and organized crime?"

"Elizabeth, not involved, he actually planted the bomb. I have surveillance footage." She felt like she was punched in the stomach. She sat in silence as he told her all the information they have so far, including the meeting he took in Miami and the large bank account Lucky now has.

"What I am the most worried about is not losing our inventory or warehouses. Lucky is doing this for revenge more then the money. There is not telling what he is going to do. I don't know if they asked him to go after me or Sonny. My mind has been going nonstop. I am even worried that he may try to take the boys, which is why I don't want them at Audrey's. I just… I don't know."

Elizabeth felt tears in her eyes. "I can't believe this. How did I marry him? It is hard to believe that he has changed this much."

"Elizabeth, he is not the same person he was all those years ago. If there is one thing I have learned it is that people do change, can change… and it is not always for the good."

He brushed her hair from her face and wiped it dry. "I did think to him. My lies turned him into this animal."

Jason placed his hand under her chin and turned her head so she was looking at him, "No, don't you blame yourself. You did not do this, Lucky did. Everyone has a choice Elizabeth. You can choose to do the right thing or the wrong thing, choose to do things the easy way or correctly the long way. Lucky made his choice… it was his choice. The same goes for Sam."

"What is going to happen to them?" she asked.

He shook his head, "I don't know. I have a feeling that it does not matter what we do, from what I have heard, these guys from Miami are worse then Anthony Zacharra. I'm sure he does not plan on paying Lucky and Sam to finish whatever they came back here for. They would not leave witnesses like that."

She nodded and leaned into him. After a few minutes they stood up and climbed back on the bike. She held her arms around him even tighter for the ride home. Once they pulled up to the house Elizabeth climbed off the back of the bike, kissed and hugged him. "Thank you Jason… for the ride, for telling me, everything. I love you."

"I love you too." He kissed her again and was instantly interrupted by the sound of his phone ringing. She left him outside on the phone and went in to check on Spinelli and the boys.

"Morgan"

"Jason, I talked to my guy in the PCPD. Apparently Lucky talked to Cruz briefly then said he was going to talk to Mac, but he never went to Scorpios office, he went to Rick's."

"Why would Lucky talk to Rick?" Jason asked himself out loud. "Thanks Max. Call me if you get any more information." Jason flipped his phone closed and made his way into the house.

Spinelli was sitting on the couch talking with Elizabeth. "Spinelli, I need you to get me some information."

"Want me to leave the room? Should I not hear this?" Elizabeth asked.

"You can stay. I need you to look into Rick." Elizabeth and Spinelli's faces showed shock. "It seems that Lucky paid him a visit today. Why would Lucky go see Rick, especially when he is on leave for work."

"So you think he is working with Rick? That is so… wow."

"I will make my departure instantaneously and initiate my research without delay." Spinelli got up from the couch. "Have a good night fair Elizabeth."

"Goodnight Spinelli, thank you for staying with the boys."

"You are most welcome. I will keep you informed Stonecold" Spinelli said as he walked out the door.


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

"Nurse Webber, I think it is time for us to have a discussion." Epiphany said crossing her arms over her chest.

Elizabeth closed the file she was working on and turned to face Epiphany. "Ok."

Epiphany sucked in a breath, "I realize that your new relationship poses certain safety risks in your life, however this cannot continue." She pointed at the guard standing a few feet from the desk.

Elizabeth looked from Epiphany to her guard of the day, Milo. "Epiphany, I see what you mean but even if I tried to send him away, he wouldn't go."

"I know that Mr. Morgan has a good heart and this is nothing personal against you or him… that being said I do not want his business feet from my patients, even if that is a guard for you."

Elizabeth nodded.

"Elizabeth, you are a fine nurse, probably one of the best that I have here on staff, but if this situation does not change… you will not be able to work here."

Elizabeth suddenly felt nauseous. "What if I talked him into staying over there in the waiting area and ask them to not hover so much?"

"I would be willing to work with you on it, however I do not think I can say the same for Dr. Ford. He will put an end to it." Elizabeth looked at Milo who seemed to be hearing parts of the conversation. Milo gave her an apologetic look and backed away a few feet toward the waiting area.

"Things are crazy right now, I think the guards will ease back after a little while." Elizabeth explained.

"I hope so Elizabeth, I'd hate to lose you on my staff." Epiphany said as she walked away. Elizabeth stood there thinking about what she can do. She did not want to quit her job but if it came down to working here or staying with Jason, she would choose Jason without a second thought.

The elevators opened and Elizabeth looked up to see who was approaching the desk. She let out a low groan. "Hey Carly, what can I do for you?'

"Aren't you little miss helpful. How are things with Jason, can you make sure you give me warning before you leave him all hurt and alone so I can be prepared to pick up the pieces of your mess?" Carly snipped.

"Are you here to harass me or do you need something, psych appointment perhaps?" Elizabeth snapped back.

Carly forced a fake laugh "So you are a comedian now. I have an appointment with Dr. Lee."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow, "Are you pregnant Carly?"

"Not that I would tell you if I was… but no, I am not… yet." Carly crossed her arms, "Are you?"

Elizabeth laughed and picked up the phone to page Kelly. "Dr. Lee should be here shortly, you can have a seat."

"Actually, I'll wait right here. You didn't answer my question Lizzie… is miss perfect preggers?"

"No Carly, I am not pregnant."

Carly turned to Milo, "How did you get stuck on this job, who did you piss off to be assigned to miss perfect?"

Milo held up his hands as if to say that he was not getting involved. "I get it Milo, you don't want to tell me in front of her, I'll talk to you later." She winked to him.

Elizabeth looked at the clock and paged Dr. Lee again, there was not much more of Carly she could take before she lost it on her. "Carly…" Elizabeth sighed. "It is obvious that we will be in each others lives for a long time, why don't we both learn to be polite and cordial to each other?"

Carly looked at her for a moment before bursting out laughing. Elizabeth shook her head as she saw Kelly approaching the nurses station. "Thank goodness you are here. Nice talking to you Carly" Elizabeth said and turned her back to them. Once they walked away she returned to her work. She looked up at Milo and said, "How do you deal with her all the time?"

She did not expect an answer so she was surprised when he replied, "Why do you think I volunteer to guard you and not her." She flashed him a smile and went back to her work.

--------

"I think I am being tailed." Lucky stated to Sam. They were driving to the Quartermaine's to visit Luke.

"Do you? Is someone following you now?" Sam asked.

"No, it is more of a feeling. It seems like there is always a car or someone around, know what I mean… even if I am just walking down on the docks. I have only had this feeling for the last day or so." Lucky said.

Sam reached and grabbed his hand, "You are probably just paranoid."

"Rick said the same thing when I mentioned it to him. With everything going down tomorrow night I need to be sure that I am not being followed." Lucky said looking in his rear view mirror. "Rick said it could possibly be the Perez's tailing me to keep tabs to be sure I am not trying to pull one over on them."

"So, not to change the subject… what is your final decision on Jason and Sonny?" Sam asked. "You know I am with you whatever way you plan, you know where I stand?"

"What's that?"

"Jason and Sonny would come after us, we need to take care of them. Not to mention Joey Perez has quite a large sum of money waiting for us if we do." She knew that this was about revenge, mostly for Lucky, only partly for her. Sure she wanted Jason to suffer and wanted to take something from him. He took the most important thing from her… because of him she can never have children. Besides the revenge she wanted the money and Lucky knew that.

For Lucky, it was all about revenge. He wanted Jason to suffer. He believed that Jason and Sonny had poisoned this city. Jason stole his family, his life. Deep down he knew that he wanted to personally hold the gun to Jason's head and pull the trigger. Sonny would be a nice bonus but the hair on the back of his neck stood at the thought of killing Jason Morgan. He finally spoke up, "I agree Sam, we need to do it. We will go with the plan tomorrow night."

Sam nodded as they pulled into the Quartermaine's. A little more then a day from now she will be rich and be rid of Jason forever.

---------

Jason walked into Sonny's Livingroom as sonny was hanging up the phone.

"Jase, what do you have for me?"

"It's Rick, he is the link. Spinelli found records. He has been using a pre-paid phone, but he has been using the same one. I know that he called Lucky a few times so Spinelli was able to figure out the number and found many calls to a Miami area number in the past few months. I'm sure it is him."

Sonny leaned forward in his chair and rubbed his forehead. "So Rick has cut a deal with them and recruited Lucky once everything with you and Elizabeth went down. Are you sure this information is accurate that Spinelli found?"

"Yes, if you would like to see it yourself I will bring him over to show it to you."

"No, if you say it is valid then I believe you." Sonny sated simply.

Jason leaned on the arm of the couch. "So, what do we do about the three of them? Bring them in or don't bother, should we just take them out?"

"Well I know what you want to do." Sonny sighed. "What about our tail, anything new?"

"No, Lucky has not done much except visit the PCPD."

"Ok, things are too quiet today for anything to happen. Wait till tomorrow to make a move on them. In the meantime I am going to go pay my brother a visit, see if he squirms… although knowing him he will admit to it." Sonny chuckled.

"I'm going to go get the boys, call me after you meet with Rick." Jason headed out of the house and over to Audrey's.


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

"Well if it isn't my law abiding brother." Rick said sarcastically. "Tell me, what brings you into enemy lines?"

Sonny entered Rick's office and sat in the chair in front of his desk while Max stood by the door.

"Do you really need to being your guards to visit me, it's not like I'm going to jump out of my chair and attack you." Rick joked.

"How are you doing Rick? Do you feel any different with my blood pulsing through your veins?" Sonny asked.

Rick snickered. "You know I have been feeling a little nauseas lately. The only reason you gave me blood is to look good in front of Kate, you didn't care if I lived."

"Does it really matter why… I did it. I am not here to tell you that you owe me anything, I am just being a concerned brother seeing how you are recovering." Sonny said flashing Rick a dimpled smile.

"Sonny, don't even pretend that you care about me. What are you really here for dear brother?"

Sonny shook his head and stood from his seat. "I was just wondering if you felt a change since you have my blood in you… see if you suddenly have an urge to, I don't know, join the criminal element that you so forcefully chase to put behind bars. I just realized something though, you always have been a criminal… you just cover it up well and hide behind your D.A. status. I guess I am more wondering if you have entered into any new ventures in your many failed attempts to take me down?"

Rick glared at Sonny.

Sonny continued, "Because you will fail… again."

"I don't know what it is that you think is going on. I can assure you that you do not know what you are talking about." Rick smugly said.

Sonny grabbed the doorknob and stopped before opening it, "Rick, I can assure you that next time you will not walk away. I have been overly generous because we share a mother. My generosity has run out." Sonny and Max exited Rick's office. Rick immediately grabbed a phone from his desk drawer and made a phone call.

"Are we still set for tomorrow night?" Rick asked.

"Yes, it is a go, all of it." Lucky replied.

"Good, make sure Sonny is taken care of. He CAN NOT walk away." Rick emphasized.

"I know… I have to go."

---------

Jason sat on the floor with Jake working with him, trying to get him to crawl. He kept falling forward and smashing his face into the floor causing Jason to laugh. He picked him up and threw him up in the air. Jake let out belly giggle which urged Jason to continue tossing him in the air. Jason loved these moments. The times when he was playing with the boys or spending time with Elizabeth. The rest of the world seemed not to exist and it was just him and his family.

Elizabeth walked out of the kitchen with Cameron and they sat on the couch. Cameron watched Jason play with Jake for a minute before jumping in and Jason alternated between throwing Cameron and Jake in the air. She sat back and watched her boys play together.

After a little while Cameron started dragging as did Jason. They all seemed to have tired each other out. Elizabeth and Jason took the boys up and put them to bed for the night before climbing into their own together. Elizabeth laid on her side and rested her head on Jason's shoulder.

"I think you should call Diane and start the adoption paperwork." Elizabeth suggested.

"I was thinking about that too. I will call her in the morning." Jason said as he placed a kiss on the top of Elizabeth's head. "Have you thought any more about the wedding?"

Elizabeth rolled onto her belly so she could look at him. "A little one, definitely small… Em, Grams, Spinelli, Sonny, Monica… not many more."

"Carly." Jason added.

"We'll see about Carly. She needs a muzzle first, or at least she needs to promise that she won't act all… Carly." She laughed.

"I'll work on Carly… now where?" Jason asked.

"You know, I keep thinking where and I'm having trouble coming up with a place. No church… maybe outside if we wait till May or June when it is warmer out… but then there is the chance of rain."

He smiled at her indecisiveness. "I don't care where it is or who is there… as long as you are there." She leaned up and gave him a quick kiss. "Ok, so spring and possibly outside."

"It seems so far away." She sighed. "Maybe we can do it sooner. I guess once we decide where that will help us figure out when."

"I would go to city hall with you tomorrow if that was what you wanted."

"I almost forgot to tell you, I talked to Monica yesterday. She is coming over tomorrow to see the boys, is that ok?"

He nodded, "That is fine, it would be nice if Monica got to spend time with them… and I am glad she is coming here rather you going over there with them, I don't like the idea of the boys around Edward too much, or Luke and Tracey."

"Exactly what I thought too. Monica is genuinely happy about it." Elizabeth added.

"You know, we could always get married here, there is a huge back yard." He suggested.

"I kinda like that idea, we'll have to work on it… the backyard needs some perking up."

"Once things settle down a little at work I want to get a contractor out here to do a little work on the house… I want to build an office, a playroom for the boys, maybe a little studio for you in case you ever get the urge to start painting again… maybe even put in a pool."

"Wow, listen to you… we might as well buy a brand new mansion." She laughed. "You are talking a lot of money… and a lot of rooms for me to have to clean."

"First, I like this house, I don't want to sell it… and I know that you do too. You can hire a maid or nanny, whatever they call it when they help with the kids and the housework. And I don't want you to worry about money, believe me when I say I have plenty and I want you to feel free to buy and shop for whatever you want. What would the point be if the money sat there forever if we can enjoy it now… I am not going to run out, that is for sure." Jason said.

"So you are saying that you want to be my sugar daddy." She joked. "I, like you, am simple, I don't like big expensive, extravagant things. I am more simple, but it will make you feel better I'll go out and buy myself a fancy pair of shoes."

"Sugar daddy seems weird, makes me feel like I'm some old man trying to buy you. I am just saying that my money is your money, I actually have a card for you to use… it is in my wallet on the dresser. There is pretty much no limit so you can use that for everything… groceries, clothes, whatever the boys need, a car." He laughed, "Whatever you need."

She nodded. "I didn't realize I was in love with such a rich man."

"I don't have Sonny money, well close but he definitely flaunts it a bit."

"Umm, you think. I've seen his house or compound, whatever you'd call it. I could never live in a house that big, it is too much." Jason heard a buzzing and saw his phone lighting up and vibrating on the night stand next to his head. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Sonny. Elizabeth sat up so he could get out of bed but he didn't, he just sat up against the headboard.

"Yea."

"Jase, are you at Elizabeth's?" Sonny asked.

"Yes."

"I'm on my way, I'll be there in five minutes." Before Jason could object Sonny ended the call.

Jason looked at Elizabeth, "Sonny is coming over."

"Why, is everything ok?" she asked.

"Well he met with Rick earlier and it must not have gone good, we have a feeling he is the tie between Lucky and the Perez's." As soon as Jason said it out loud he knew it was a mistake. He did not want to tell her any more information then she needed so that if it came down to it she could claim that she knew nothing. Her jaw dropped and she was shocked.

"I guess nothing should surprise me by now."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't tell you too much, I don't want you to have to get involved." He lifted himself out of the bed and pulled his jeans back on. "I'll be quick." He said quickly bending to kiss her then exiting the room.

Elizabeth laid in the bed staring at the ceiling. Both of her ex-husbands were now teamed up and apparently going after her future husband. She suddenly jumped out of bed, ran to the bathroom and got sick.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Jason opened the door and Sonny entered. "What happened?"

Sonny walked past Jason and Max followed. "Rick didn't say anything unusual… well nothing unusual for Rick. Still, I have a feeling he is involved." Sonny said.

"We can't do anything unless we know for sure." Jason said.

"He seemed overly… smug." Sonny added. "I think he is the least of our worries anyway. At least we believe that he is the middle man so that helps. We can deal with Rick after we deal with everyone else involved."

"What do you think their next move is?" Max asked.

"I think it is going to be soon. We need to be ready." Jason said.

Sonny nodded. "We need to keep the increased security on all properties and our families… especially yours since Lucky and Sam… and probably Rick are involved. We can add a tail to Rick but I don't think it will do much good."

"I want to be informed if any of them go near any of the properties or Elizabeth and the boys. I want to be the first call, it is because of me that they are doing this and I want to take care of the situation." Jason said.

"It's not because of you Jason, you did not have Rick contact them and get involved with the Perez's." Sonny said.

Jason put his hand up, "But the reason Sam and Lucky are involved is because of their need for revenge against me and Elizabeth… and they are the immediate threat. Do we have any knowledge of the Perez family visiting Port Charles?"

"Not as of now, no." Max answered.

"I want to have a meeting first thing in the morning to discuss everything." Sonny said walking toward the door.

"I will have an update on Lucky's movements." Max added following Sonny. "See ya."

"Bye." Jason and Sonny said in unison.

---------

_"__Dearly beloved, we are gathered here in the sight of God, and in the presence of these witnesses, to join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony; which is an honorable estate, instituted of God. It is therefore not to be entered into unadvisedly, but reverently, discreetly, and in the fear of God. Into this holy estate these two persons come now to be joined. __The commitment made between these two people affects all of you. So, before this man and woman enter into the everlasting covenant of marriage, they ask each of you for your support. If there is anyone who objects to this union, let them speak now or forever hold their peace." The minister said._

_Elizabeth stood with her hands in Jason's. He was wearing a full tuxedo and she was wearing a beautiful wedding dress that was fit for a princess. Elizabeth looked around at the guests then back into Jason's eyes._

_The minister was about to continue when he looked past the couple he was marrying and gasped. His gasp caused the guests as well as the bride and groom to turn and look at the rear of the church. Lucky was standing there holding a gun pointed at Jason. He quickly squeezed the trigger sending a bullet into Jason's chest. _

_Lucky ran from the church as Elizabeth dropped to the ground beside Jason. "No JASON! No… no…. no… no…."_

"Elizabeth?" Jason repeated as he climbed into bed.

Her eyes flew open and at the sight of Jason climbing into the bed she flung her body onto his. She did not usually have bad dreams, actually she didn't usually remember her dreams enough o remember if they were bad or good. She knew that she had the dream because she was scared of how this whole thing with Lucky and Rick was going to turn out. She kept reminding herself that Jason would not let anything happen to her and the boys… and himself as well.

"You ok?" he asked.

She nodded her head. "I must have dozed off for a few minutes. I had a really bad dream… but it's ok now that you are here."

"What was it about?" he asked.

"Nothing to worry about." She quickly changed the subject, "How did it go with Sonny?"

"Ok, nothing concrete on Rick but we are pretty sure that he is involved. I need you to know that in the end Rick and Lucky may not be…" 

Before he could finish she answered, "Yes, I know." She reached for his hand and linked her fingers in his. "I love you."

He bent his head and kissed the top of her head. "I love you too."

---------

Elizabeth was still sleeping when Jason woke up the next morning. After watching her sleep for a bit he finally got his day started. The boys were still sleeping as well and not wanting to disturb any of them he left Elizabeth a note and headed to meet Sonny.

His meeting with Sonny was uneventful, no new information and until they made another move there was nothing that could be done except monitor everything. He called Dianne and asked her to take care of the adoption process then decided to go visit Spinelli to see if anything new had been discovered.

"No Stonecold, I have yet to find any new information. The maladjusted exes have yet to make another move."

Jason nodded. "Spinelli, I have been meaning to talk to you about something."

Spinelli's head popped up, "What can I assist you with?"

"It's about the Penthouse."

Spinelli's hands flew up, "I'm sorry Stonecold, I have been meaning to commence searching for a new domicile, I have just been busy the last few days…"

"Spinelli, I am not asking you to leave. I just wanted to let you know that I am not going to sell the Penthouse… at least night right now… so you are welcome to stay here for now."

Spinelli's jaw dropped, "Stonecold, you are giving me your Penthouse?"

"NO, but you can stay here as long as I own it and you work for me. Just no parties and take care of the place for me."

"Your generosity is overwhelming."

Jason rolled his eyes and nodded his head as his cell rang, he sighed when he saw that it was Carly.

"What do you need Carly?" he muttered into the phone.

"I wanted to make sure you are coming to my party on New Years." Carly said.

"What party Carly?"

"The one at the Metro Court, me and Jax are throwing it."

"I don't think so Carly, I may already have plans, I am not sure… plus I don't think we can get a babysitter in 2 days."

"Excuse me, I will find you a babysitter, or you could just leave Lizzie at home, she doesn't have to come with you." Carly snipped.

"Carly!"

"Geez Jason, I was only kidding."

"We will try to make it." Jason said.

Carly huffed through the phone, "Jase, you will be there if I have to call miss perfect myself and…"

"Carly, you are not helping your case. I will talk to Elizabeth and let you know."

"You are unbelievable Jason, I cannot believe how whipped she has you. It's pathetic."

"CARLY!"

"Fine, let me know…" before she could finish he ended the call.


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36

"Hey!" Elizabeth said into her phone.

"Hey." Jason said back.

"I hate waking up to a note… notes don't keep me warm. I must have woken up right after you left." Elizabeth pouted.

Jason smiled and Elizabeth could sense that he was smiling even though they were on the phone, "I know, but you looked so peaceful. I figured that you needed your sleep. Uh… how is everything going?"

"Fine, just getting the boys ready for Monica to get here."

"Oh, I almost forgot that she was coming over today." Jason mumbled.

"I'm glad she is, I want her to know the boys." Elizabeth added.

"Me too." Jason wasn't sure where he stood in his relationship with Monica but whatever happened in the past between the two of them has nothing to do with Jake and Cameron and they should know their grandmother. He cherished his relationship with Lila and hope that the boys do the same with Monica. "I have a question."

"Uh oh." Elizabeth joked.

"Carly called me…"

Elizabeth interrupted, "I don't like questions that start like that." She warned.

He chuckled. "Well apparently there is a big party at the Metrocourt on New Years Eve and she wants us to attend."

Elizabeth laughed, "She doesn't want us to attend, she wants you to attend which means that she has to invite me to get you there." He did not disagree. "If you want to go I am okay with it, we could use a nice night out anyway. I will have to see if Grams or Spinelli can baby-sit… oh and I need to get a dress."

"Ok, I will tell her we will be there. I think you should just wear that black dress from the other night." She could tell he was smiling again.

"You have already seen me in that one, I'll get a new one."

"Ok, actually in the first drawer in the kitchen is a card, put the dress on that card and use it for everything… and don't fight me on this." He jokingly warned.

"Yes sir!" she teased.

"I will see what Spinelli is doing that night to see if he can baby-sit before you ask Audrey."

"Sounds good, let me know. Are you going to be late tonight?"

"I'm not sure yet. I will call you in a few hours once I get a better grasp on things around here."

She nodded and said "Ok then, I'll talk to you later… love you."

"I love you too, bye."

No sooner did Elizabeth place her phone on the table that she heard a knock on the door.

Elizabeth opened the front door with Jake in her arms. "Hi Monica, come on in." Cameron was sitting on the floor playing with some toy cars and a little motorcycle.

"Cameron, do you know who this is?" Elizabeth asked.

He looked up and stared at Monica for a minute but did not answer. "Cam, this is daddy's mommy." She turned to face Monica and whispered, "What do you want him to call you? Mom mom, grandma, Monica? It is up to you Monica."

Monica knelt down beside Cameron and offered her hand to him. "Hi Cameron, I am your grandma." Saying that brought a huge grin to her face and though she did not see it from her position, it brought a smile to Liz's as well.

Cameron gave Elizabeth a questioning look and Elizabeth nodded. He extended his hand and shook Monica's hand. "Hi." He said bashfully.

Monica decided not to push and stood back up as Elizabeth offered Jake to her. Monica reached out and took him from her then moved over to the couch. "Hey there Jake, I'm your grandma. Aren't you the most adorable little baby." Monica sat on the couch and examined her grandson. She looked at his hands and feet, tickling him on his side. "You are just like your father, ticklish in all the same spots he was." Elizabeth thought to herself that he still was. "My goodness Elizabeth, he looks so much like Jason did when he was a baby."

"He looks a lot like him even has his calmness. I have never seen a baby picture of Jason but I am sure he looks like Jason did as a baby. I think Jason wonders that sometimes but I don't push the subject." Elizabeth said.

Monica sighed, "I'll bring over some pictures next time, maybe you can even show them to Jason. I don't want to push him either though."

"I'd like that." Elizabeth stood and grabbed the bottle she had been feeding him and handed it to Monica. "He may take some more of this. He pretty much holds it and feeds himself now so he will throw it if he doesn't want it."

Monica smiled, "Just like your father." Jake took the bottle and started sucking it down. "Is he a good eater? Jason was, he loved the vegetables, any kind."

"Yep… squash, carrots, anything." Elizabeth added.

After a few minutes of silence and watching Jake Monica spoke again. "So do you have any plans for a wedding yet, any ideas?"

"Yea, we have talked about it. Something small, maybe in the back yard in the spring or early summer… just a few family and friends."

"That sounds nice. Your house is beautiful, I heard about the trick of Em _finding_ the house for you, her and Jason can be pretty sneaky but I am so happy for the relationship that they have." Monica lifted Jake to her shoulder and patted his back to which he responded with a loud burp.

"They are both great, you raised two of the most amazing people I know. I don't know what I would do without either of them."

Monica flashed Elizabeth a smile and was about to speak but Cameron walked over to the couch where they were sitting. "Grandma, wanna see my room?"

Monica was shocked that Cameron was comfortable enough to ask her that, "I would love to Cameron." Cameron held out his hand for Monica to grab it and led her up the stairs to his room leaving Elizabeth on the couch with Jake. "Wow Cameron, this is a great room… you have a train bed, you are one lucky boy."

"Mommy says that all the time." Cameron sat on the floor and pulled a bin from under his bed. "Want to play with my trains with me?" he asked.

"You know what Cameron, I love trains." Monica said sitting herself on the floor next to him. She helped him hook the track together in a big circle and picked her train. For the next fifteen minutes they sat and played with the trains talking about the toys Cameron likes to play with, movies he likes to watch, and how much he likes playing with his brother.

Elizabeth appeared in the doorway, "Cameron it is time for lunch. Would you like to eat with us Monica or did you already eat lunch?"

"I did eat already and I don't want to overstay my welcome on my first visit." She turned to Cameron, "But I want to come back and play trains with you again, is that ok?"

Cameron nodded. They stood from the floor and made their way back to the Livingroom. "Maybe you can come over for dinner one night, when Jason is home."

Monica smiled, "That would be nice but you may want to talk to Jason before you commit to it. I don't want to push him too much."

"He will be fine, he loves you Monica."

She nodded the kneeled down next to Cameron, "I had fun playing with you, I'll see you later."

"Ok, bye grandma." Cameron said and gave her a hug. Elizabeth could tell that Monica was truly enjoying spending time with the boys.

"Thank you again Elizabeth, you have no idea how much this means to me… I wish Alan were here for this." Monica bent her head and gave Jake a kiss on his forehead. "Bye Jake."

"See you later Monica, we'll set up dinner for one night soon." Elizabeth said to Monica as she turned for the door.

"Ok, I will see you at work." Monica said then left.


	37. Chapter 37

Chapter 37

"Rodriguez" Cruz said answering his phone.

"It's me, can we meet?" the voice said.

"What do you want?" Cruz asked.

"Not over the phone, my house, 20 minutes. Make sure you are not followed." Before Cruz could protest the phone line was dead. He sighed and told the desk sergeant that he had some person business to take care of and that he was taking a lunch break.

Fifteen minutes later he entered a house and sat in the Livingroom waiting. Sonny walked in, "Thank you for coming Cruz."

"I don't know why, I told you that I will not work for you."

"That is not why I needed you to come here. You are one of the few cops that I trust, and that I trust will do the right thing. I have information and I need someone that will handle that information properly." Sonny stated as he pulled out a folder and placed it in front of Cruz. "If you are interested, open the folder. I know who blew up the warehouse and who they are working with. Problem is that with the parties that are involved, I cannot ensure that the case will be investigated properly. We do not want to have to take this matter into our own hands if you catch my drift."

Cruz nodded and picked up the folder. He examined the surveillance pictures, bank and credit card records then looked up to Sonny. "How do I know that these were not altered."

"Why would I make something like this up Cruz. I came to you because I know that you are a good cop and really are there to take in the criminals. You reiterated this when I asked you to join my team recently and you read me a whole speech about morals… but you kept it to yourself. You could have taken me in for simply trying to get you to be an informant for me, but you didn't, which shows that you have respect for me and my business even though you do not always agree with how I run it." Sonny said.

"So you want me to take this to Rick?" he asked Sonny.

"No, we actually believe that Rick is involved as well. If you look at the phone records some of those calls were to a Port Charles number when Lucky was in Miami, also some to the PCPD. We have a feeling they will make another move, soon… possibly tonight."

"This could get very messy Sonny. What do you think the next move will be?" Cruz asked.

"We think it will be a similar attack, another explosion or hijacking of a shipment. Also, Jason is worried about Elizabeth and the kids. It is obvious that they are Lucky's motivation. We have their security taken care of but it proves that Lucky has lost it." Sonny added.

"Ok… I have a new partner since Lucky left. He is new to town so he has no real ties at the station to Rick. I recruited him myself so I know he is clean and good. We will tail Lucky tonight and investigate to see if your information is valid. I hope you are being honest with me." Cruz warned.

Sonny sat on the edge of his desk and looked Cruz in the eye, "I am."

"Good." Cruz walked toward the door.

"Out of curiosity, have you talked to Lucky much lately?" Sonny asked.

Cruz stopped and turned to Sonny, "Briefly when he stopped by the station, but he was not there to talk to me… he… he was distracted by Rick's presence." Cruz had a bad feeling since he saw Lucky, he did not seem himself. Deep down he prayed that the packet Sonny had just shown him was fabricated but he knew that it was not. He continued walking from the room as he murmured "I'll be in touch".

---------

Once Cruz was gone Jason appeared from around the other side of the wall. "Do you think he believes you?" he asked Sonny.

"Yes, I saw it in his eyes, he knew something was up with Lucky before I even called him. I just don't think that he knew it was something so extreme." Sonny said.

"I hope you are right about Cruz. He and Lucky have been friends for a long time." Jason worried.

"Cruz always does the right thing." Sonny said as Max came in and announced that Diane was there. She followed closely behind Max and smiled at him awkwardly before walking over to Sonny and handing him some paperwork.

"Here is all the information you needed. No need for verbal thanks, I take financial and fashion rewards. Just so you know, I prefer Manolos over Choos." She said.

"Thank you Diane, although I have no idea what Mamols or Chews are." Sonny said.

Diane rolled her eyes, "Men have no idea about good couture, or good shoes for that matter." She changed her attention from Sonny to Jason. "I got a message to call you but have been sidetracked by Sonny's never-ending requests, how can I be of service to you Mr. Morgan?"

"I know you do not usually handle family law but I would like for you to draw up adoption paperwork for me to adopt Elizabeth's son." Jason stated causing both Diane and Sonny to raise their eyebrows.

"Wow." Sonny whispered but chose to stay out of it and say nothing further.

Diane nodded, "As long as you pay me I will practice whatever type of law you would like. Send all the information to my office and I will have the paperwork ready for you tomorrow. It will be a problem if Lucky will not sign the papers."

"Oh, Lucky never adopted Cameron and his biological father is dead… so I assume that it would just need Elizabeth's signature."

"Talk about easy. Once the paperwork is signed you will both need to go before the judge then it will be official."

"Thanks Diane. Sonny, I will call you in a bit." Jason said then exited the room. Max followed and they went off to find out if there was any new information on Lucky, Rick or Sam.

---------

A few hours later Jason was on his way home. Max himself was following Lucky and had already called to report that he had seen Cruz in the area of Lucky's house keeping tabs. Jason had a gut feeling that something would happen tonight. Lucky had not left his house much today, things were just too quiet. Sam had been staying with Lucky since they got back in town and had not returned to her apartment.

Spinelli had informed Jason that while doing his research he came across a tabloid website that said there were rumors that _Everyday Heroes_ was not going to resume taping due to low ratings since Amelia left. Surely Sam would have known this for a couple days which only adds to the likelihood that she is involved. She does not have much to lose and if she needs to go on the run she does not have to worry about leaving her job, not to mention they are probably getting paid a lot more money when the job is finished. Jason assumed that they were being paid well into the 7 digits, most likely if Jason and Sonny were killed. Jason was actually glad the Lucky got involved. It made everything easier, he knows Lucky and Sam which only works to his advantage.

Jason was pulled from his thoughts when his cell phone rang. "Morgan."

"Jason, Rick just paid a visit to Lucky's house. He entered with a bag and exited without it. It must be on for tonight." Max said.

"Did you see Cruz in the area? Did he witness this?" Jason asked.

"Yes and Cruz did not see me, I've been keeping my distance and letting him think he is the only one watching them."

Jason nodded, "Good. Call me the minute they leave the house."

"Will do."

Jason was worried how this plan would work out. With Cruz involved it would be hard for them to act if it came down to it. They had to operate lawfully and hope that Cruz would catch Lucky, Sam and Rick on his own before they did any further damage. The rest of the drive home Jason's mind produced many different scenarios of how the night could play out and he hoped that there was not more to it then they had discovered.

"Hey." Elizabeth called over her shoulder as Jason walked in the house. Cameron ran over to Jason and he lifted him into his arms.

"Hey buddy, did you have a good day?" Jason asked.

Cameron nodded, "Yea… I meeted my grandma."

"You did? Did you have fun?"

"Yep, she's nice." Cameron said as Jason set him on the couch and bent down to greet Elizabeth with a light kiss.

"I missed you today." Elizabeth said and fluttered her eyelashes at Jason.

"And I missed you." Jason replied and looked around for Jake.

Elizabeth noticed his glances around the room, "Jake fell asleep in his swing so I figured I would let him sleep a little extra so you could spend time with him when you got home. Good timing too, I just ordered a pizza."

"Yea, I am hungry, I haven't eaten all day… but, I think I am going to have to go back out later." He regretfully said.

"Meeting your girlfriend?" she teased. He forced a smile and she could see instantly that what he had to do was no joke. "Lucky?" she whispered so Cameron did not hear his name.

He looked her in the eye and nodded his head. His actions gave her butterflies in her stomach, and not in a good way. She instantly was nervous and wanted to know everything but knew she was better off not asking. They were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Pizza." She simply stated. A minute later she walked past Jason and Cameron with the pizza, "Come on guys, lets eat dinner." _'Not that I have an appetite now."_ She thought to herself, praying that everything went smoothly tonight and Jason returned home to her.

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Thanks again for the great feedback! I am so happy that you all like my story.


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38

Jason ate dinner with Cameron and Elizabeth then played with Cameron and Jake. Spending time with all of them made everything disappear, at least for a little while. Once the boys were in bed Jason made his way to the kitchen where Elizabeth was cleaning. There was music playing from the small radio that hung from the cabinet and her hips swayed with the music. She was standing at the sink doing dishes and he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

She tipped her head up and rested it on his chest. She reached and turned off the faucet then just stood for a few minutes, enjoying the way his arms felt around her, swaying lightly to the music. She ran her fingertips along his arms then moved one hand over her head and behind the back of Jason's. She tilted her head back and to the side then pulled him down to kiss her. She meant for it to be a simple kiss but he quickly turned it into more. He deepened the kiss and squeezed his arms so tight that were wrapped around her that she pulled back and gasped for her breath. He released his arm from around her and she turned to face him.

They stood for a minute staring into each others eyes then suddenly lust took over and his lips attacked hers. The kiss was so intense that her knees shook and he felt her struggling to stand. He quickly wrapped his arms around her and lifted her onto the counter. His mouth quickly returned to her, her legs wrapped around his hips and pulled him closer to her. Her hands found the bottom of his t-shirt and she quickly tugged it over his head. She trailed kisses down his neck, across his collar bone and across his chest. Her hands wandered from his chest to his abs then around his back, she was amazed at how beautiful his body was.

Jason grabbed the back of her head and whispered, "I need you" then moved his lips back over hers while he began unbuttoning her shirt. Much to his dismay the buttons were very small and his fingers were having trouble. She sensed this and reached to work them herself. Torturously slow she unbuttoned the first button on her shirt then the second. Unable to wait any longer he pulled her hands away and ripped the shirt open, causing some of the buttons to fly off. She laughed at his impatience and he whispered with a smile, "I'll buy you a new one." His hands quickly went behind her back and unhooked her bra then slid it down her arms and tossed it on the floor. He pulled her closer to the edge of the counter then bowed his head and flicked a nipple with his tongue before taking it in his mouth. She grabbed the back of his head, held him there and let out a soft moan. Eventually he moved to the other and showed it the same attention he had the first.

His hands moved to the button and zipper of her jeans while his lips again found hers. Her hands followed suit and moved to the button and zipper of his jeans. He lifted her off the counter just enough to reach his hand under her to tug her jeans and underwear from under her. He placed her back on the counter and pulled them the rest of the way off. She quickly reached around his waist and pushed his jeans down along with his boxer briefs, he helped them the rest of the way when they were out of her reach.

Once they were both naked he tugged her completely to the edge of the counter and wrapped his arms around her waist. His lips returned to hers and he kissed her gently, afraid he was being too rough. He ran his tongue along her upper lip then took her lip between his. Her legs were wrapped around him and she squeezed, pushing him close, showing him that she was as eager as he was. Her fingers pressed into his back, attempting to pull him closer. "Jason, I need you too, please." She pleaded. Her words were all he needed to hear. He positioned himself and entered her in a hard fast thrust causing them both to let out a moan.

He started moving hard and fast as she kept moaning his name. She tightened her legs around him and dug her nails into his shoulders which caused him to speed up his pace. His tongue shot into her mouth like a dagger and it battled with hers. His arm wrapped around her waist lifting her off the counter and moved her to the table where he tipped them forward and fell onto it with her never slowing his pace. She was now beneath him, raising her hips attempting to meet his fast pace. Seconds later she cried out his name as she felt herself coming apart which sent him over the edge as well. His mouth was on her neck and he moaned her name while stroking it with his tongue.

They laid on the table as their breathing steadied when Elizabeth started giggling. Jason lifted his head. "What are you laughing at?"

"I think we need a bigger table." She joked.

---------

Across town Lucky was loading himself into his car. After tonight he knew that he would be leaving town. He headed to the Quartermaine's to visit with Luke. He drove the back roads in an attempt to see any tails that were following him. There were a few points that he thought there was someone possibly following him but he was not sure. Little did he know that he did not need to be followed. Max had planted a GPS tracker under his car and he was sitting down near the docks watching his movements. Cruz however was tailing him but kept a good distance and pulled off on side roads when possible.

Lucky visited with Luke for about an hour before heading back to pick up Sam. The ride back to his house he was again on a watch for tails following him but saw nothing that would raise any flags.

Sam climbed in the car with a bag containing a few things she would need for the night. "Last chance if you want out." Lucky said.

"No, I am in, all the way. Lets do this and get on with our life." She said and they pulled away from his house, probably for the last time.

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Jason and Elizabeth had dressed themselves and Elizabeth returned to her cleaning.

"You don't have to clean, do that tomorrow… or you can hire a maid." Jason suggested.

She whipped her head around, "I am perfectly capable of cleaning my house. I enjoy cleaning, besides, I'm in a cleaning mood right now."

"I know you are capable but if you don't like doing it you can pay someone to. What is a cleaning mood?" he asked.

"Yea, I don't know. I just have the urge to clean." She said and shrugged her shoulders. "Did you have a maid that cleaned the Penthouse?"

"No, I don't like the idea of a stranger touching my stuff." He said.

She laughed, "Then why would you suggest that I hire a maid if you don't like them?"

"If it makes things easier for you then I would get over it." He stated.

She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "You are so thoughtful and selfless… are you real?"

"Real?" he asked.

"Yea, you seem too good to be true." She said, bring her hand to cup his cheek.

He smiled, "You know I have the same thoughts about you." He took her hand on his cheek in his and kissed her palm. He bent his head and brushed his lips against hers just as he heard his phone ring. He exhaled a deep breath and kissed her forehead as he pulled his phone from his pocket. Seeing Max on the caller ID he flipped it open.

"Yea?" Jason said.

"It's on, meet me at the docks." Max said.

"I'll be there right away." Jason said flipping his phone closed.

Elizabeth returned her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. "Jason, please be careful tonight. Do what you need to do to protect our family and yourself but please, please be careful." She tipped her eyes up to meet his. "I love you."

He placed his hand under her chin and kissed her lightly, "I love you… more then I can even express. I will be back in a bit."

He placed his hands on either side of her head and placed another kiss on her lips, it was light but he lingered for a few seconds before pulling away.

She watched as he walked out the door then sat down, prayed that he would come home to her. She was not a very religious person but since she had gotten with Jason she found herself thanking god for him often. Tonight she found herself praying that he would return to her.


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Fifteen minutes later Jason found Max hiding around the corner from where Lucky and Sam were sitting on a bench. "They have been sitting there for about thirty minutes. I haven't been able to catch most of their conversation but it seems like general small talk."

"Ok…" Jason replied waiting for more information.

"It's strange, almost like they are waiting for someone or something. Maybe there is someone else involved that they are meeting, I just don't know…" He drew in a breath and whispered, "Maybe it's a trap."

Jason nodded his head, "Is anyone else around?"

"Yea, we have a guy in each of the warehouses on lookout, Cruz is around the corner in his car. I think he saw me though."

Jason squatted against the wall thinking this could be a long night. Forty five minutes later he was about to leave and tell Max to call him if there was a change when Sam and Lucky stood from the bench and walked in opposite directions. Jason looked at his watch and saw that the time was 11:45 exactly. They were the only two people visible on the docks. The temperature was definitely close to zero which kept the docks clear of any potential witnesses.

Jason moved back a little so Lucky would not see him or a shadow that could have been created from the nearby light post. Lucky was carrying a duffle bag which Jason assumed had explosives of some sort enclosed.

Walking toward his targeted warehouse, the one Corinthos organization referred to as Warehouse 17, Lucky suddenly got the feeling that he was being watched. He wondered if it was because he knew Sam was on lookout but quickly dismissed that idea. He stopped in the middle of the dock and looked around. On a hunch he called out, "Jason?" He was not sure if he would get a response even if he was there but he figured he would give it a test.

Jason was around the corner when he heard Lucky calling his name. Was Lucky bluffing and just calling him hoping that if he was there he would appear or had he given himself away somehow. Jason chose to remain hidden. He standing there and checking his surroundings again Lucky disappeared into the warehouse after quickly picking the lock on the side door. He was in the building for no more then 2 minutes. The entire time Max was on the phone with a guard inside being notified of Lucky's every movement. Lucky had entered and made his way quickly to an empty wall. He placed his bag on the ground, opened it, flipped a switch and left without closing the bag.

Jason received a text message the instant Lucky entered the building. The sender showed as blocked and it only said that he had to get to the docks right away. The message was a trap and he assumed that it was sent by Sam or Rick. At this point Jason realized that they wanted him dead… part of their plan was to kill him, something he would not allow to happen.

The guard inside warehouse 17 instantly inspected the bag once Lucky exited. There was a 3 minute timer on it and he had no clue how to dismantle it. He notified Max and ran to the door on the opposite side of the warehouse then disappeared.

"Jason, he put another bomb, 3 minutes, well probably more like 2 now." Max said

"Call Sonny, ask him if he got a text message, tell him it is a trap and to ignore it." Jason demanded. He assumed that if they wanted to take him out then they were probably looking to take Sonny out as well. The Perez family would want them both gone. He watched as Lucky walked back to the bench he had sat on with Sam. "Find out where Sam is."

Jason did not want to step out until he knew where she was. He had a feeling she was hiding waiting for a shot on anyone that appeared to investigate the upcoming explosion. Jason watched as Lucky looked at his watch then turned back to the warehouse just as the last second ticked off the timer and the warehouse exploded. It definitely was not as strong of an explosion as the previous one and the damage was limited to the one side of the warehouse.

Jason remembered that with the last explosion the police were instantly on the scene. He wondered if that would be the case here again. He knew that he had to be careful and keep aware for Port Charles' finest.

Unable to wait on confirmation where Sam was any longer Jason appeared and walked toward Lucky, drawing his gun from under his jacket, tucked into the rear of his pants. Max quickly dialed and directed others to block all entrances and exits from that area of the docks. Lucky was not going to get away.

Without turning Lucky spoke, "Jason, I knew you'd show up."

"You haven't exactly been discrete Lucky." Jason growled. "Do you honestly think you could get away with this Lucky… this greed and hate?"

Jason raised his gun and aimed it at Lucky. He flipped the safety off and cocked the gun.

"You think you are going to kill me?" Lucky chuckled then turned to face him in time to see Sam firing her gun from behind Jason. Jason had noticed Lucky's glance around him and moved just in time as she fired the gun. The bullet grazed Jason's arm and he fell to the ground. He quickly flipped around and pointed his gun at Sam but before he knew it another shot was being fired but it was not Sam firing it. Sam fell to the ground and Lucky pulled a gun out firing at someone shooting from the dark behind Jason and Sam. Jason assumed that one of his guys were hiding when they saw Sam and fired, probably Max.

Shots were not returned and Lucky assumed that the shooter in the dark had been hit by one of his bullets. He returned his gaze to the ground but Jason was no longer there, he turned his head to find Jason holding his gun inches from Lucky's temple.

Jason had a hole in his leather jacket from where Sam's bullet had grazed through. He knew that it had gone right through but luckily she missed on her shot.

"Go ahead Jason, shoot me. You can't prove anything! SHOOT ME!" Lucky demanded. "I want you to shoot me, I will feel just as good even though I am dead." Lucky chuckled, "I will still have ruined your life, you will go to jail for killing a cop not to mention regardless of how much she hates me now, Elizabeth will never forgive you."

Lucky continued, "I am still the Lucky that she married and loved, no matter what has happened she is does not want me dead."

Jason finally spoke, "Keep telling yourself that, you piece of shit. I don't care what you have to say, Elizabeth wants you dead and wants me to come home to her." Jason was about to squeeze the trigger when he heard his name been called.

"Morgan!"

Jason turned his head but his gun remained pointed toward Lucky. Jason was aware that Lucky still had a gun in his hand and was not about to lower his.

"Lower your gun Jason, don't do it." Cruz said.

Lucky smiled when he saw that it was Cruz, "Did you see that Cruz, Jason attempted to kill me? You are going down Morgan."

"Lucky, you drop your gun too." Cruz demanded.

Lucky looked at Cruz with a confused look. Cruz too a few steps toward them, gun still in hand. He was standing next to Sam, she had a gunshot wound to her abdomen.

"Me?" Lucky asked. "Morgan came after me, I was sitting on the bench and the warehouse exploded. More thugs drawn to our town by Corinthos and Morgan. They are poison."

Jason stood silent waiting for Cruz's reaction to Lucky's fictional account of what happened. "Thugs like the Perez family?" Cruz asked observing Lucky's reaction. The confused look returned to Lucky's face.

"Who is that, another crime family I am sure." Lucky scoffed. Jason shook his head and lowered his gun slightly. He knew that he was not about to kill Lucky with Cruz standing right there. Lucky noticed his arm lower and took the chance to grab it. He quickly grabbed Jason's arm that was holding the gun and pointed his gun at Jason.

Jason shook his head, "Don't do this Lucky, you won't win."

"Oh, I forgot, you are a professional killer. If you are so good at your job then how come I have a gun to your head?" Lucky smugly said.

Jason stood silent, looking to Cruz who nodded and pointed his gun at Lucky.

Lucky was taken aback when he saw Cruz's gun pointing at him. Jason took the chance and whipped his free arm around, knocking the gun from Lucky's hand. Pain pulsated through Jason's gunshot arm. Lucky lunged at Jason and threw a punch that landed on the side of Jason's face. Jason pulled his arm up that was still holding his gun and Lucky began to attempt to wrestle it away from him. A shot fired in the air and Jason flung his elbow down and hit Lucky in the stomach knocking him back and stumbling to the ground.

Lucky quickly sprung back to his feet having retrieved his gun that was on the ground and pointed it at Jason. They stood an arms length apart with their guns pointing at each others head. "Who is the quicker draw Morgan." Lucky said.

Cruz took another step "Put the guns down."

"Are you the one that shot Sam?" Lucky asked Cruz who did not offer him a reply. "You see Cruz, if I don't kill Jason here, he surely will kill me." Lucky looked back at Jason who was staring at him, his eyes were empty black holes, glaring at him, waiting for a simple flinch so he could shoot.

"No he won't Lucky. I know it all, everything you have been up to. Don't do this, we are friends… I want to help you." Cruz begged.

"What are you talking about, what lies has Jason fed you?"

"DROP YOUR GUNS!" Cruz yelled. Jason was watching Lucky's finger that was resting next to the trigger. As soon as Lucky moved his finger a millimeter Jason was prepared to fire, he was definitely quicker with a gun then Lucky was.

Lucky looked over at Cruz who still had his gun raised toward Lucky. Cruz took another step and was now within feet of where they were standing.

"Jason, back away… leave me and Lucky." Cruz requested.

Jason hesitated, lowered his gun slightly and took a step back, never taking his aim completely from Lucky. He saw Lucky's finger move to the trigger as did Cruz. "LUCKY DON'T!" Cruz yelled as both he and Jason fired their guns before Lucky could.


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter 40

Jason stood still holding his gun and looked toward Cruz who was kneeling beside Lucky checking for a pulse. Cruz shook his head and moved to Sam and checked for her pulse as well, again shaking his head.

"Jason, I am going to do something out of character here… get outta here. I will clean this up." Cruz said.

"Are… are you sure?" he asked then moved his gun back and tucked it in his jeans.

"Go before I change my mind. You were home all night."

Jason nodded a thank you toward Cruz and walked away. Cruz pulled out his phone and dialed Mac. Ten minutes later half of the PCPD were arriving on the scene and Cruz filled them in on what happened. He had been suspicious of Lucky so he did some digging and uncovered that he and Rick were working with a Miami crime family that had plans on moving into Port Charles. Lucky took the job of being the footman in town. Rick was the organizer of the whole deal. Cruz told Mac that he was following Lucky when he and Sam blew up the warehouse and he got into it with Lucky. Sam snuck up behind and shot at Cruz, missing him and getting Lucky. Cruz shot Sam sending her down and her gun flying over the edge of the docks (he figured they would discover 2 different bullets in Lucky). Lucky again aimed his gun at Cruz but Cruz shot first.

Mac stood in shock. One of his best detectives and the D.A. This did not look good for the department. "Do you have evidence of this link between Rick, Lucky and the Miami crime family?"

Cruz nodded, "Well I do for Lucky, I have surveillance footage but the evidence on Rick is harder to prove since he actually was not physically involved in any meetings and had hidden any financial transactions."

Mac immediately called Baldwin and woke him from bed, demanding he immediately come down to the scene.

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Jason called Max and met up with him to go over the situation. After their meeting he headed home.

When Jason left, Elizabeth sat staring at the wall for the better part of an hour. She knew what ultimately would happen tonight and was preparing herself for the fall-out. She finally peeled herself off the floor and climbed into bed to wait for Jason to arrive home. She laid there for over an hour and was about to go insane from worry. She finally decided that she needed to take her mind off things. She pulled a notebook from her nightstand and began sketching. She had began sketching random pictures lately, something that she hadn't done in years. She thought about Carly's party. Tomorrow she would go buy a dress for it. Suddenly she dropped her sketchpad and her hand covered her mouth. '_HOLY SHIT_!" she thought to herself. '_New years is in 2 days… its December 29th, well 30th now_'. How had she forgotten?

Thirty minutes later she heard the door close downstairs. When Jason appeared in the bedroom doorway relief washed over her body. She jumped out of bed and ran into his arms only to quickly realize that he was injured.

"Jason, you… you're shot?" she said pulling his coat off to reveal his bloody sleeve.

"It just skimmed my arm, I can't go to the hospital to get stitches."

Elizabeth pulled him into the bathroom and quickly got to work on the wound. "It's a good thing you are marrying a nurse." She whispered as she cleaned it. "I could stitch it up but I'm not very good at it, you will have a scar either way." She wrapped it tightly. "Can you tell me what…."

"Do you want to know?" he asked. She nodded and he took her hand. He led them into the bedroom and sat on the bed, pulling her down next to him.

"First I need to tell you that I was here all night. I am not asking you to lie but if I am asked that will be my story…" he paused and sucked in a deep breath then continued. He told her the entire story, exactly what happened, what was said and even that Cruz said he would cover it up. Elizabeth was taken completely by surprise with Cruz's actions.

"I cant believe Cruz… but he is a good man, he knew it was the right thing to do and that you would not be treated fairly." Elizabeth said.

"I'm sorry." Jason whispered and took her hand in his, linking their fingers.

She shook her head. "No, don't be sorry. He obviously would have killed you… because of that I cannot be sorry that Lucky is dead. Sure I will miss him, but I will miss the Lucky that I knew when I was a teenager, not the Lucky that was killed tonight. He was not the same man… and I need you to know that… I am not sorry and neither should you."

Jason brought her hand up and kissed the tip of her fingers.

"So what happens now?" she asked.

"I don't know. I don't know what will happen with Rick. For some reason I have a feeling that he will get away with this and maybe even come out looking like the good guy in the situation." He stood from the bed and removed his jeans. Elizabeth climbed back and Jason returned to the bed. She immediately moved over and rested her head on his arm. Jason continued. "We still need to be careful. The Miami family may retaliate or may not and the same with Rick." She nodded.

Jason reached his arm up and brushed a stray hair from her eyes. He kissed the top of her head and breathed in the scent of her shampoo. Her hand was resting on his stomach and he brought his up and again linked his fingers in hers. They laid together for a while, awake, letting the events of the night sink in and coming to the realization of what it meant. Both of their exes were dead. Elizabeth let out a sigh. "Jason?" she tipped her head back so she could look at him to see if he was awake.

"Yea?"

"I need to talk to you about something, nothing to do with Lucky, Sam or Rick." She said apprehensively.

"What is it?"

She turned and sat up so she was facing him. "I was thinking earlier. Thinking about everything, trying to keep my mind off where you were, trying not to worry too much." She looked over at the floors as if she was collecting her thoughts and trying to find the words for what she had to say.

"Elizabeth, if you can't handle…"

She interrupted him, "Can I finish?" she chastised.

He nodded for her to continue.

"Anyway… Trying to take my mind off things, I was thinking about the wedding, which I did come up with a few ideas but that is beside the point. I thought about the fact that I needed to go buy a dress for the New Years party."

"Elizabeth, I told you that if you don't want to go, we don't have to. We can stay here."

"Jason, stop interrupting. This has nothing to do with the party." She felt herself getting nervous because she was unsure how he was going to react. "As I was saying… I realized something… do you know what today's date is?" He did not reply. "You can speak now." She said.

"I guess it's the 30th now, why?"

"Well when I realized what the date was I suddenly got a feeling in the pit of my stomach because there was something that I completely forgot about."

"Elizabeth you are driving me crazy here, what is wrong? You are worrying me."

"What I am trying to say, Jason, is that when I realized what today's date is… I screwed up." She began rambling and talking really fast. "You see, after Jake was born I didn't see a need for it and I always forgot anyway but then me and you happened again and I started it and thought I was doing good, but I started a new one over a week ago and everything has been so crazy lately that I never even realized that I didn't get my…"

Jason interrupted, "Elizabeth you lost me." He said with a perplexed expression.

She finally blurted it out "Jason, I think I'm pregnant!"


	41. Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Jason sat in shock.

"I'm sorry Jason, I screwed up. When you miss a pill you are supposed to take two the next day and I did that but I guess I screwed up one too many times. I know I told you that I had it taken care of but I guess I am not dependable like I thought I was." She watched as his eyes moved to her stomach then back up to her eyes.

Tears formed in her eyes, "I haven't taken a test yet so I may not even be but I just thought that you should know."

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Elizabeth, listen to me… I know that we have not really talked about having more kids but I have definitely thought about it. I know that I would love to have another child with you, whether it is now or 2 years from now… when it happens, it happens. I take it from your reaction that you are not ready for another?"

She sniffled and shrugged her shoulders. "I had thought about it too but not now. I mean we aren't married yet… Jake isn't even a year old yet. I'd be like 6 months pregnant for our wedding." With that realization the tears began flowing harder.

He pulled her down so that he could hold her against his chest. At first the thought of another child was shocking but he would be happy whenever it happened. "Elizabeth, listen to me for a minute. I know that you are freaking out because the timing is bad… again… but we can move up the wedding and add on to the house. We could also wait to get married till after or hell, we can get Audrey to watch the boys for 2 days and fly to Vegas. What I am saying is that I know I want another baby with you… when is not an issue."

She sat up to look at Jason and saw that he had a content look on his face. She could tell that he was completely honest… he did want a baby.

"Tell you what, let's solve this mystery now. I will be back in ten minutes." Jason said then kissed her forehead and pulled his clothes back on. Less then a minute later she heard his car door shut and he was pulling out of the driveway.

Elizabeth sat on the edge of the bed staring at her hands. Jason was incredible, she had just thrown this on his lap and he was calm. She could see a flicker of happiness in his eyes at the possibility. While he was gone she sat thinking about how the timing was off… but then again her timing was always off with everything she had done and look at her now, she is with Jason… marrying him and has two beautiful healthy boys. Her hand moved to her stomach.

Eleven minutes later he returned with a bag in his hand. "Gotta love the twenty-four hour drug stores."

She finally smiled when he handed her the bag. She looked inside and saw five pregnancy tests.

"I wasn't sure what one to get… digital or early results or one step easy… so I got them all."

"You are amazing." She said and tipped her head up. He met her lips for a light kiss then she walked past him into the bathroom. A few minutes later she emerged carrying the stick and placed it on the dresser. "Three minutes." She said then walked over to where he was standing and wrapped her arms around his waist.

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Sonny stood in his Livingroom listening to Max inform him of the events that happened on the docks. "Why didn't Jason come here to tell me all this?" Sonny asked, slightly annoyed that Max seemed to be more his partner lately then Jason.

"Well he got shot in the arm and wanted to get it cleaned up. Not to mention he was worried about Elizabeth and the boys, not sure if Rick was going to make a move, you know him, always worrying." Max turned toward the door. "I'd expect a visit from the PCPD about the explosion. I will let you know when they arrive."

"Ok, I am going back to bed in the meantime." Sonny made his way up the steps and climbed back into bed with Kate.

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"What the fuck happened down here." Scott Baldwin yelled as he approached Mac and Cruz.

Mac held his hand out toward Cruz in a gesture asking him to explain the events. Cruz took a deep breath and took Scott through all of the information he gathered (from Sonny) then he continued with the events of the night leaving Jason completely out of the details. "What should we do about Lansing?" Mac asked.

"I think we may have enough circumstantial evidence to put him on a paid leave and search his office and home. We need to act fast." He turned to Cruz, "I need you to show me everything that you have so I can present it to the judge and get a warrant. Who else knows about Rick's alleged involvement?" Scotty asked.

"Us three and my partner." Cruz replied.

"Keep this quiet till the morning, at least the knowledge that Rick was possibly involved. We don't want him to get a chance to hide any evidence. Has anyone contacted Alexis yet?" Scott asked.

"No, we have not attempted to contact next of kin yet. I will be the one to notify Luke and Alexis of what happened… I feel like I should be the one to tell them." Cruz said.

"Actually, that may not be a good idea… considering." Scott said.

"I agree, I will do it." Mac offered.

Scott looked over to Lucky's body still laying on the docks. As he walked away from Cruz and Mac he mumbled "Fucking Spencers."

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Jason and Elizabeth were still standing with their arms wrapped around each other. He was swaying slightly with her in his arms, not quite dancing, but not quite rocking either. He ran his hand up and down the center of her back. He was trying to comfort her. Jason whispered "It's been three minutes."

Elizabeth nodded against his chest, "I know. You go look. I took the digital one so it will either say pregnant or not pregnant."

Jason nodded and released his arms from around her. He picked the stick up off the dresser and looked at the little display on it. Elizabeth was watching his expression trying to read it. He was staring at the stick as if he was trying to decide how he felt about what it said. She was biting her lip so hard that she thought that she may have drawn a little blood.

Jason placed the stick back on the dresser and took her hand. He shook his head lightly. Elizabeth was instantly shocked with her own reaction. Tears flowed in a heavy stream from her eyes. She leaned her head into his chest and cried, surprised at the fact that she did want this. She pulled back and looked up at Jason through tear blurred eyes. "We aren't pregnant." She stated.

A smile came to his face at her reaction, he had a feeling that deep down she really wanted a baby as much as him, no matter the time, he was right. "No… we are."


	42. Chapter 42

Chapter 42

"Huh… but you just said… and… it's…" Elizabeth stumbled on her words.

"I know, don't be angry. I think we both needed to see your reaction to it being negative before you found out it was positive. When I shook my head you looked sad… you want this." He placed his hand in her hair and stroked her head with his fingertips.

Elizabeth stood there silent. They stood in their embrace for a while, her head buried in his chest. A little while later she pulled herself out of his arms and got ready for bed. He followed her lead and climbed into the bed next to her. She immediately folded her body around his, draping her leg and arm over him.

After laying silent for a while she finally spoke. "You know, I do want a baby, and I guess when does not matter. It's just… the wedding and all."

"I know and I want you to have the exact wedding that you want. If you want to move it up, have the wedding you want and can plan it in time then I will marry you as soon as you want… or if you want to wait till after the baby is born then we can wait." He said reassuringly.

She contemplated her options for a little while and finally came to her decision. "Ok."

"Ok what?" Jason asked.

"Let's do this quick, get married as soon as possible… it has to be within a month, before I start to show. I don't want to have to wear a maternity dress."

"Are you sure this is what you want?"

"Yes, I do want to marry you and the sooner the better. If Emily can plan a wedding that quick then so can I… I will just have to have some help." She said.

"Well I don't think I am going to be much help but I am sure that Em can help you. We won't be able to have it outside like you wanted."

She lightly smiled, "Actually, I think we can. It is amazing what they can do with those outdoor heaters… and they have really pretty ones that can set quite a romantic mood. I am definitely going to look into that."

"Anything you want… anything."

"Emily leaves on her honeymoon in a few days. Maybe she can come over for a couple hours before and help me go over the basics since she will be gone for a couple weeks."

"I am sure she would love to help." He assured Elizabeth.

"But I don't want to tell anyone about the baby till after the wedding. Well, we can tell Emily, but that is it." She said and he nodded in agreement.

Elizabeth leaned in and kissed him. It was a slow, soft and passionate kiss. She was finally beginning to get excited about the idea of having another baby. She pulled back from the kiss and a smile formed on her lips. "I do want this… I really do."

He smiled at her confidence in her decision. "Me too. I love you Elizabeth."

"I love you too." She said as she leaned in to kiss him again, rolled onto her back and pulled him on top of her.

---------

Mac stood outside in the frigid night air and knocked loudly on the door. It had been a couple minutes and had yet to get an answer. Finally he saw Alexis through the glass on the door. She was tying the belt on her robe as she peeked though to see who was standing outside. Her face showed worry as she opened the door.

Alexis shivered the instant the cold air hit her body and moved a side so Mac could enter her home. "Mac, is everything ok? Of course it isn't… why are you here in the middle of the night, what is wrong?"

"Alexis, you may need to sit down."

"I'm fine standing Mac."

He nodded his head. Alexis had always been a strong woman but new like this was never easy to give or receive. "It's Sam, she's… dead."

Alexis gasped, stumbled back and was caught by the table. She braced herself against the table and cupped her mouth with her hand as tears trickled from her eyes. "What happened?"

"She was shot on the docks." Mac said hesitantly.

"Shot? Murdered?" Alexis asked in a whisper.

Mac looked away from Alexis for a minute to gather his thoughts. "Not exactly. Detective Rodriguez shot her… in self-defense."

"WHAT!"

"I cannot really give you all the details yet but she and Lucky were apparently involved in something that was very dangerous and now they are both dead." Mac explained.

"That's not right, there is no way… but Sam… she." Alexis could not continue her thoughts, she lost her balance against the table and fell completely to the floor. She did not ask Mac any more questions. He helped her to the couch where she sobbed.

"Can I call someone for you?" He offered.

"Nicholas." She managed to say.

He nodded, "I will call him for you."

"I am sorry for your loss Alexis." Mac said and left her sobbing.

---------

Twenty minutes later Mac arrived at the Quartermaine mansion. On his drive over he had called Nicholas and told him about Sam and his brother, leaving out the details, he simply told him that they were shot and there was an ongoing investigation. Mac told him that Alexis was asking for him.

Mac rang the bell located next to the large door. He had expected Luke to answer the door knowing that he was a night owl, however he did not.

"Commissioner Scorpio, what brings you over this time of the night?" Alice asked. She was wearing a robe that was zippered from her neck all the way to her ankles.

"Hi. I am sorry to bother you this late but I need to speak with Luke please."

"Mr. Luke? Is everything ok?" she asked.

Mac shook his head, "I'm sorry I cannot tell you."

She gave him an understanding nod and left Mac in the foyer to track down Luke. A few minutes later he descended the steps. He obviously had not been sleeping, he was dressed.

"Scorpio, what bad news do you have for me? Or are you here to arrest me for something?" Luke asked walking past him into the study, Mac followed.

Mac knew that Luke has been recovering from a heart attack and bypass surgery so he was afraid to say it but knew he had to. "I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this Luke… Lucky is dead."

"Impossible, he was just here a few hours ago." Luke stated plainly.

"Luke, I saw the body, both he and Sam are dead."

Luke looked Mac in the eyes and saw that he was telling the truth and sure of what he was saying. "How?"

"We are investigating the circumstances but it was a gunshot wound. I'm sorry Luke." Mac said sympathetically.

"Thank you Commissioner." Luke said and made his way to the exit of the room. Tracey was standing in the doorway and had apparently heard the entire conversation. Mac took the chance to leave before any more questions were asked.

"Luke, I will contact you tomorrow." Mac said walking past Luke and Tracey who were in a rare embrace.

Once Mac was gone Luke had a realization. "Oh god! Lulu!"

Tracey took Luke's hand, "I think you should wait till the morning to talk to her." Luke nodded and just stood in shock, tears trapped in his eyes. They built until he felt as though his eyes were going to pop, then they finally fell down his cheeks. He was unable to piece together how Lucky could have been at the house hours ago and shot since, how… why?


	43. Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Rick awoke around 6 am worried that he had yet to hear from Lucky. He was also surprised that he did not get a call overnight from the PCPD informing him that another Corinthos property had exploded… or that Jason and or Sonny were dead. The fact that none of this happened had him worried. He kept brushing off the thoughts thinking that had something gone wrong Lucky would have notified him and perhaps Lucky and Sam were in hiding due to the danger.

He finally decided to head in to work early to see what was going on. He got dressed and opened the door to leave and found Mac and Cruz on the other side about to knock.

"Commissioner, Detective Rodriguez, what can I do for you gentlemen?" Rick said in an uncertain tone.

Mac extended his hand with a folded up piece of paper. "Lansing, we are here to search the premises. You should also be aware that there is currently a team searching your office."

Rick's expression changed from uncertainty to shock as he read the search warrant. "This is preposterous."

"Take a seat Rick." Cruz said as he and Mac entered followed by 2 other uniformed officers.

"You are wasting your time. You are not going to find anything because there is nothing to find." Rick stated smugly.

Cruz chucked, "You may think so, but it does seem as your time has just opened up… so since you have nothing else to do you might as well humor us."

Rick gave him a questioning look.

"You have been placed on a paid leave while we conduct our investigation. The mayor will be calling you this morning to explain the circumstances of your leave, or you can stop in and visit him. Once we are done here we need you to come down to the station to answer a few questions, Baldwin will be temporarily filling your position." Mac said. "We will keep your suspected involvement out of the press for now but if we find something I cannot promise anything.

"You guys are opening yourselves up for a lawsuit here, but I will let you have your fun for now. Can I ask what the nature is of this investigation… or are you going to deny me my rights?" Rick asked.

"You are suspected of conspiring with organized crime." Mac stated.

Rick sat unsure of what they knew. Had Lucky and/or Sam flipped? What possible evidence would they have, Rick was faultless when it came to covering his tracks. He made sure that there would be no trail that would lead to him.

After nearly two hours of searching the team was complete and the men exited the house followed by Rick and all made their way down to the station.

---------

Emily sat in the study looking through a photo album containing pictures of the four musketeers. So much had changed over the years, now Lucky was gone. Tears fell from her eyes as she reminisced of the times they had all spent together.

It had been hours since Mac had called Nicholas and told him about Lucky and Sam. He went to comfort Alexis but Emily knew that Lulu would need him too. Alfred entered the room, "Miss Emily, is there anything that I can get for you?"

Emily sniffled and wiped the tears from her face, "No thank you Alfred." Alfred turned to leave the room. "Wait!" Emily shouted.

"Yes, what is it?" he asked.

"Could you possibly make a few calls and push back the honeymoon a few days?"

"Absolutely Miss Emily, I will do that right away. Let me know if you need anything else." He turned and exited the room.

A short time later she got ready and headed off to work. She had two shifts left before she leaves on her honeymoon, today and she was on the New Years eve shift tomorrow night. She called Nick's cell phone on the way to work and left him a voice mail to stop by the hospital if he has the time. He was going to be spending all him time comforting Alexis and Lulu, someone had to be there to comfort him.

Emily had been at work for an hour before she had the chance to head down to the nurses station and see if Elizabeth was on shift. Emily approached the desk and found her staring at the desk. Eventually she looked up and saw Emily standing there. They immediately pulled each other into a hug. Neither wanted to back away from the hug, both having flashes of the Lucky they once knew in their thoughts.

"No one may believe this but I will miss him Em." Elizabeth confessed. "Maybe not the Lucky that we have been with for the last couple years, but the Lucky I fell in love with… it seems so long ago."

"I know Liz, I am going to miss him too. He got so messed up."

They stood there for a few minutes, talking about some of the things they used to all do, the memories. "I have to get back to the O.R… my mom needs me to scrub in on a surgery."

Elizabeth nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Umm… I don't mean to change the subject or anything but I need to talk to you about a few things. Are you available for lunch?"

"Yes, I will meet you in the cafeteria at 1… sound good?"

Elizabeth nodded and Emily pulled her into another quick hug before disappearing into the elevator.

---------

"Hello Rick." Scott Baldwin said as he walked into the interrogation room.

Rick smiled, "Let me guess, you set me up so that you can have my job?" Rick said.

Scott shook his head. "Can we just get on with this Lansing." Scott walked over and took a seat at the table across from Rick. Seconds later they were joined by Mac.

"The situation being what it is I feel that I should sit in rather the lead detective." Mac stated.

"I agree Mac." Scott replied. "Ok, lets get down to this shall we. First things first… Mac."

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand your rights?" Mac recited.

"Thank you for that beautiful rendition Mac, yes I do. Also being that I am a fabulously trained lawyer, I am waiving my right to have another present."

Scott rolled his eyes. "I will be recording this. Ok, are you aware of the events that unfolded last night, December 29th?"

"No." Rick stated simply looking around the room, seeming bored.

"So you do not know that Lucky Spencer and Sam McCall are dead?"

Rick's head jerked up and he glared at Scott. "No."

"Have you ever heard of the Perez crime family, namely Joseph "Joey" Perez?" Scott asked.

Rick felt his palms go sweaty. How did they know, how did Lucky and Sam die, what had happened. How did Scott tie the Perez's into all of this. He had to find this out. If they got word that they were tied to any of this then Rick knew that he was a dead man.

"Rick, do you need me to repeat the question?" Scott asked.

"No and no." Rick sucked in a deep breath. "What are you implying Scott, do you think I am involved with organized crime?" Rick stood from his chair.

"Sit down Lansing, I am the one asking the questions here." Scott looked down at his notepad. "Uh… when is the last time that you spoke with Mr. Spencer?"

"Luke or Lucky?"

"You know I am talking about Lucky!" Scott snapped.

"Well I just want to make sure I answer every question truthfully and if it was Luke then the answer would be different. He stopped by my office the other day."

"And what was the nature of his visit?" Scott asked.

"Nothing, he just happened to pop in my office the other day. He asked me about a case he had worked on before his leave that is about to go on trial."

"What case?"

"Freddie Davidson… he was arrested for multiple armed robberies. He was asking how the case was coming along and when the trial was set for."

Scott nodded, "Ok, he came all the way down here for that?"

"I cannot assume why he was at the station that day, I only know why he stopped in my office. As you well know Scott, I cannot assume what someone else is thinking."

"We have reason to believe that you have been the middleman, for lack of a better word, of a deal between Lucky and Sam and the Perez family. Until further notice you are on leave and let us hope that the information that we have does not pan out, for your sake at least." Scott said.

"Is that all you have for me Baldwin?" Rick stood from the table. "I will be in the mayors office if you need me. This whole line of questioning and theory of yours is ridiculous and fabricated."

"Do not underestimate me Rick, if you are guilty I will take you down… and yes, that is all I have for you… for now." Scott said. Rick smiled and released a half chuckle from deep in his throat then exited the interrogation room.

"What do you think Mac?" Scott asked once Rick was gone.

"I think you could have been a little harder on him." Mac said.

"No, I don't want him to think we have anything on him. I want to wait to see what we find in his place, and watch him for a couple days. We'll get him." Scott said as he and Mac left.


	44. Chapter 44

Chapter 44

"Nicholas" Emily said running up to hug him. She had seen him walking off the elevator as she was about to head down to the cafeteria to meet Elizabeth. She stood holding him for a minute before speaking. "How is Alexis and Lulu?"

"Alexis is ok, she is strong… Lulu is a wreck though. I just dropped her off to be with Luke. We are going to go see our mom in a little while."

"Good. I had Alfred make the arrangements for us to leave on the 4th instead of the 2nd for the honeymoon."

Nicholas nodded. "It looks like the funeral will be Wednesday which was the day we were supposed to leave, I'm sorry Em."

"Hey don't be sorry." She grabbed his hand. "I love you and I am here for you. Can I help you with anything?"

He shook his head, "I have to go pick Lulu back up. I just wanted to come see you for a minute before we head over to see Laura."

"Have you heard anything more on what happened last night?" Emily asked.

"Nothing yet. Mac said he would contact Luke today. I better go."

Emily could tell that he did not want to talk about it. "Nicholas, I love you. I will see you at home when you get back."

"I love you too." He said and gave her a quick peck. She watched him until the elevator doors closed then headed down to the cafeteria to meet Elizabeth.

---------

Elizabeth had been sitting waiting on Emily who was late for their lunch. She was eating a salad and had to settle for a bottle of water instead of her regular diet soda since she shouldn't have caffeine or the artificial sweetener. Her mind kept trailing back to the memories of her and Lucky. The good memories that exist from long ago. There were so many good times that they shared. She could not believe that he had changed so much over the past couple years. It was almost as though he was a completely different person. While she was trying not to she kept placing some of the blame on herself and kept trying to think about what she could have done differently to prevent everything from happening.

Had things not happened the way they did she would not have Jake and Jason. She hated herself for being so selfish in making light of everything but could not help it. She was brought out of her thoughts when she saw Emily paying the cashier for her sandwich. Emily strolled over to Elizabeth's table and took a seat. "How are you holding up?" Emily asked.

"I'm ok, how about you?"

"You are lying but it's ok, I understand. I am doing as expected. Deep down we both loved him no matter how much he changed over the years." Emily said somberly.

After a few minutes of silence Elizabeth spoke again. "I know the timing is really bad but I was wondering if you could help me with the wedding."

"You know I will. Why even ask, I already told you before that I would help." Emily said.

A mischievous smile appeared on Elizabeth's face, "Well we have kind of moved it up, we are not going to wait till the spring and since you planned you wedding so flawlessly in about a month I was hoping you could help me pull it off as well."

Emily was surprised by the change "Of course, we can get started right away. We are not leaving for Europe for like five days now so we can probably get most of it planned out before I leave. Can I ask why you have changed your mind?"

"Umm, the circumstances have changed a little and waiting till May or June would not be… optimal." Elizabeth cryptically explained.

"Optimal? Yea, Liz… you are not making much sense here. Is it because of everything that happened with Lucky?" she asked.

Elizabeth looked around to be sure that no one was within listening distance and turned back to Emily. "What?" Emily impatiently asked.

"It is not because of everything with Lucky. It is because I… we are pregnant… again."

Emily squealed, "Liz, that's great. I'm going to be an aunt again." Emily was grinning from ear to ear.

"Yep, I know you don't want to hear this but apparently your brother has super sperm. Kind of… last time it was a defective condom, this time I was just defective and cant take a freaking pill regularly." Emily chuckled and Elizabeth continued. "You can't tell anyone yet, not even Nicholas. I want to wait till after we get married, which is why I want it as quick as possible, before I start showing."

"Ok."

"Funny thing is, when we went to Jake's for girls night out, I was pregnant and I did all those shots. You even asked if I was. It was like a subconscious way of telling me that I was stupid and to think about it. Then Carly even asked me too, just to be a smart-ass, but she asked me. Someone was trying to get through to me." Elizabeth explained. "Then last night I was sitting in bed and it was like a light bulb, _flick_, and suddenly I was like… holy crap."

"Oh my, this is great. What does Jason say?"

"You know Jason, _'whatever you need or want I will do'_, he is great. He ran right out and bought a bag full of tests because he didn't know which one to get. He is happy, he definitely wants this baby." They both laughed. "Well I decided to move the wedding up rather push it off nine months."

"This is good, it will take our mind off things for a little while. First things first we need dresses, both of us, since I am your maid of honor and all."

"Matron of honor now." Elizabeth corrected.

"Yea, matron, so dresses. Tomorrow?" Emily asked.

"Yea I have off tomorrow and actually I have to go out and get a dress for Carly's New Years party tomorrow night and I was going to go in the morning so maybe we can do both. Are you going to the Metrocourt tomorrow night?" Elizabeth said.

"Nick mentioned it, I am on shift tomorrow night. It is my last shift before we were supposed to leave on the 2nd. Since we pushed the trip back a few days it gives us more time. I'll help you pick out a dress for the party though. Ok, next… questions." Emily pulled a piece of paper from her purse. "Big wedding or small? Where? who do you want there? and when, day or night and date?"

Elizabeth laughed and swallowed her bite of salad. "Ok, small wedding, probably my house, we will work on the guest list, probably under 25 guests. Ummm, I'd like night and the date, when do you think we can have it planned?"

"We will need at least three weeks because of dress alterations and catering, although if it is small catering will not be much of an issue no matter when. So you want it at your house, inside I assume?"

"Actually I was wondering how we could work it outside, with lots of those outdoor fireplace things and the heaters. I think that would make it so romantic."

Emily was writing everything Elizabeth said down. "That does sound good." She pulled her phone from her purse and pulled up the calendar then handed it to Elizabeth. "Now lets set a tentative date."

"Wow, if you ever wanted to change careers. You are good…ummm." Elizabeth laughed then studied the dates on the calendar. "Do you think the 19th is too soon?"

"Today is the 30th so that gives us what… 3 weeks. I think we could do it. We will be back from the honeymoon on the 15th. Run the date past Jason tonight and tomorrow we will work on the guest list and menu."

"Thank you so much Em. I don't know what I would do without you." Elizabeth said.

"No need to thank me but you are welcome. My best friend is marrying my brother and giving me another niece or nephew. I'd say that this news is the best thing I could have heard today. I truly, truly am so happy for you guys. I am so glad it is finally working out for the two of you." Emily said sincerely.

"I love you Em." Elizabeth whispered.

"I love you too… sister-in-law." Emily said with a grin.

---------

"Have you heard anything?" Jason asked as he entered Sonny's office and closed the door.

"Well Cruz and Mac stopped by my house this morning and asked me some questions but other then that they are being pretty hush-hush about the investigation." Sonny said. "I have our guys nosing around the police station trying to figure out what they can. I also know that Rick's house was searched this morning, he was brought in for questioning and that he has been placed on leave."

"Ok, I have a feeling that Rick is going to walk away clean again." Jason mumbled.

Sonny shook his head. "I don't think so. I think that if they don't charge him then our _friends_ in Miami will take care of him."

"You have a point." Jason said. "I will let you know if I find anything out."

Jason stood to leave. "Is everything else ok?" Sonny asked. "With Elizabeth?"

"Actually everything is great." Jason stated simply.

Sonny nodded, "You just seem a little pre-occupied, just thought I'd check."

"Actually. We have decided to get married soon, January sometime."

"Wow, quick… why so quick?" Sonny asked.

Jason looked at Sonny unsure of how to answer. He did not want to lie to his best friend. Before Jason could speak Sonny did, "She is pregnant huh?" Sonny said displaying his dimples.

Jason nodded. "This is not why I asked her though, I asked her before we knew."

"Hey, I am not one that you have to explain yourself to, Carly on the other hand…"

Jason shook his head, "I can't worry about her right now. Keep this between us for now, I think we are going to wait to tell everyone till after the wedding… and speaking of the wedding. I was umm… Would you mind being my best man?"

The dimples again returned to Sonny's cheeks, "I would be honored."

---------

Just wanted to thank everyone again for the fantastic feedback. You all definitely keep me motivated!


	45. Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Luke plowed through the doors into the police station yelling at every officer he could "Where is Scorpio!" After a few minutes of searching he saw Mac and Cruz in the interrogation room having a meeting of sorts.

He opened the door, walked in and slammed it shut. "I want answers Mac. I cannot sit at home and wait for you to call me. What happened?"

"Take a seat Luke." Mac demanded.

"Stop dicking me around Scorpio, what the hell is going on here?"

Cruz turned to Mac, "Want me to leave?" Mac answered by shaking his head.

Luke's anger began to subside. "Come on Cruz, you were one of my son's best friends, tell me what happened to him."

Hearing Luke say that made Cruz sick to his stomach, he wished that things had not occurred the way that they had, but things have worked out this way so the situation needs to be dealt with.

Mac took the fine in front of him and dropped it on the table before Luke. "Read the file, it will help you better understand when we tell you what happened last night."

Luke opened the file and the first thing he saw was a picture of Lucky and a man having drinks in a restaurant.

"That man is Joey Perez, the son of a big crime boss from Miami." Mac explained.

As Luke thumbed through the file and looked at the pictures, bank statements and phone logs it had suddenly made sense. Lucky had stopped by last night and seemed distracted. _No, not possible, Lucky fought on the correct side of the law._

"Mac, this is not right, it is obvious that this is fabricated."

"I'm afraid it is not Luke." Cruz said.

"You believe this Cruz? You were his best friend… you know Lucky would never get involved with organized crime."

"Luke it is true." Cruz explained, "I saw it with my own eyes."

"What do you mean you saw it?" Luke asked raising his voice.

"I mean, I was there last night. Lucky was down at the docks to blow up one of Corinthos' warehouses, and I also believe it was his intention to kill both Morgan and Sonny. He succeeded in detonating an explosive in the warehouse but Sonny and Jason did not get the chance to arrive on the scene."

"That does not explain how my son got shot? I still do not believe this tale you two have been feeding me, I want to know how he got shot." Luke said standing from his chair. "WHAT HAPPENED."

"Luke, calm down. You need to relax so we can tell you." Mac said.

"NO, WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?" Luke yelled.

"Luke sit down!" Mac demanded as Luke approached him.

"I WILL SIT DOWN AS SOON AS YOU TELL ME HOW MY BOY GOT SHOT!"

"Luke!" Cruz yelled. "I was there, I can tell you… I shot him and Sam." The instant the words left his mouth he heard the door close and turned to see Alexis standing there. She had come down to ask questions for herself and now her first one was answered.

---------

Jason looked at the caller ID on his phone and saw that it was Elizabeth.

"I was just thinking about you." He said.

"Well I was thinking about you too, I miss you." Elizabeth said. "Is Spinelli babysitting tomorrow night or should I ask Grams?"

"Spinelli is, he said he will be at the house at 9." Jason explained.

"Good because I was thinking that maybe I will ask Grams if she wants to spend time with the boys tonight so we can have some time together… tomorrow night we won't exactly be alone and I want you to myself for a little while."

Jason smiled into the phone, "That sounds… perfect. I should be home around 7."

"Ok, see you then, I love you."

"I love you too." Jason replied then closed his phone.

---------

"WHAT!" Luke yelled. "What do you mean that you shot him?"

"I think you both need to sit down. I need to tell you both what happened." Cruz said as he pushed the folder over to where Alexis was taking a seat so that she could examine the evidence. "Well, I noticed that Lucky was acting odd since he returned to town. Odd is expected considering everything he went through with his marriage but he was acting odd in a different way, a suspicious way."

Cruz pulled out the chair and took a seat at the table across from Alexis. "My suspicions got the best of me and I dug a little… that was all it took." He continued explaining about the meetings Lucky had in Miami and the warehouse explosions, how he recruited Sam and the fact that they suspect that Rick was involved. "Then last night I confronted Lucky after I witnessed him blowing up the warehouse. He pulled a gun on me then Sam shot at me from the shadows, she missed me and hit Lucky. I shot her, Lucky was laying on the ground and raised his gun to me. I shot him before he shot me."

"That's it… I don't believe your story detective." Luke shot at him.

"Were there any other witnesses to corroborate this story? I know that my daughter has had some issues in the past but this… it is not her." Alexis said.

"I realize that this is hard for the both of you to believe but that is how it went down. I am very sorry that everything happened the way it did but I handled it the best I could." Cruz said.

"Your SORRY! So this is our explanation!" Luke exclaimed. "We just have to take your word on the fact that it went down the way you said it did?"

"I have to agree with Luke, Mac. This is too far out of character for both of them. People make bad decisions, it is a part of life but this. I do not believe it." Alexis said. "If Rick allegedly was a part of this I want to talk to him, where is he?"

"He has been placed on a paid leave while we conduct our investigation. I assume he is at home." Mac said. "I must ask that you please let us conduct our investigation, please do not interfere."

"He is the father of my daughter, I can and I will go talk to him." Alexis stood from her chair, "You will be hearing from me." she said to Mac as she left, closing the door behind her.

Luke was sitting at the table with his eyes glued on Cruz. "So tell me detective Rodriguez, what was Lucky's odd behavior that made you start this investigation?" Luke asked snidely.

"Does it matter Luke, I did not make this evidence up. I will say that he was acting strange, more distant then he has lately." Cruz answered.

Luke huffed, "Something stinks here and it is not your cheap cologne detective. You'd better watch out because I will be watching you like a hawk. I will have your badge!" Luke stood from his seat and left the room, slamming the door in his path. Luke wanted answers and he was not going to rest till he got them.


	46. Chapter 46

Chapter 46

Elizabeth had dropped the boys off at Audrey's house and started cooking dinner once she got home. She was not the best cook but could follow a recipe pretty well. She figured she would give a try at making some chicken piccante. She found the recipe in her cookbook and it looked pretty easy.

She was almost done with dinner when she heard Jason come in the door. She turned when she felt his presence. He was standing in the doorway, "Wow, it smells good in here." He walked over to her and kissed her on the top of her head. "Looks good in here too." He said as he brushed her hair to one side, exposing her neck then running his hand down her side and around her waist. He brushed his lips along her exposed skin on her neck.

"Hey, you are going to make me burn dinner."

He continued kissing her neck and nibbling lightly, "I thought you were going to be my dinner." She felt him smile against her neck as soon as he said it. "But since you have spent the time cooking I can save you for dessert."

She blushed at the thought and his hand moved from her side to her stomach. She felt the heat of his body along her back as his fingers trailed across her stomach. "Ok, I cannot concentrate." She finally mumbled.

He released her and moved from behind her. She watched him spin around and lean his back against the counter next to the stove. He flashed her a smile. "How was your day?" He asked.

"It was ok. I worked, had lunch with Emily and went grocery shopping. How was your day, anything on Lucky and Sam?"

He shook his head. "Let's not talk about them tonight, there is nothing new. What is this that you are cooking… it does smell good?"

"Chicken piccante, I figured it is easy… less chance of me messing it up. Can you grab a couple of plated from the cabinet for me?"

He smiled again and before he left her side to retrieve the plates he said, "I need a kiss first."

She looked at him and laughed. She tipped her head up and he met her for a light kiss. Her lips brushed against his, she kept it light but before she knew it he wrapped his hands around her head, spun her around and pinned her against the counter. She attempted to pull away but quickly got caught up in the kiss. Quickly they were brought back to reality when the timer on the stove went off. "Rice is ready." She said taking the chance to pull out of his grip and return to the stove.

He let out a sigh and went to retrieve the plates from the cabinet, taking the chance to lightly smack her ass as he walked by her. "Jason!" She glanced at him and he returned a devilish smile. She shook her head laughing, "Gimme the damn plates."

She quickly piled the food on the plates and placed them on the table. She grabbed a beer for Jason and a bottle of water for herself. They sat and Jason took a bite of his chicken, "Wow, this is really good."

"Are you being sarcastic?" She asked as she took her first bite. "Wow, it is pretty good." She said shocked.

He continued eating, repeating to her multiple times how good it was. "So how did it go with Emily?"

"Good, she is very excited about all of it. She has the wedding and party planning thing down. We are going dress shopping tomorrow. She said that we need to figure out a date, guest list and food though."

He raised an eyebrow. "We can eat this chicken."

She laughed, "Stop it! Me and Em figured maybe the 19th? Too soon?"

"There is no such thing as too soon." He said casting her an intense gaze that made her toes tingle. She was not sure if it was the pregnancy but her senses were going crazy. The food tasted good and when he touched her or looked at her she seemed to melt… more then usual.

She finally broke the gaze and cleared her throat, "Who do you want there? And where is there, here?"

"Sonny, Carly, Monica, Audrey, Emily, Spinelli…"

She added, "Robin, Laney, Kelly, I guess not many others… I am sure we are forgetting some people."

"I think we should try to still have it here like you said, outside." He added.

She nodded, "I would really like that."

He took his last bite and sat back in his chair, sipping his beer. He watched her finish what was on her plate. They sat and discussed the wedding, the food, the guests, and where they would have the ceremony outside. "One more thing, are you going to be able to take time off work for a honeymoon?"

He caught her completely off guard, she had not even thought about a honeymoon. "I don't know, I hadn't thought about it… actually forgot about a honeymoon. Can we even go away, for how long, would we take the boys?"

He laughed. "Well we can take the kids if you want but if Audrey can watch them for a week or maybe she and Spinelli can help her, it is up to you if you feel comfortable with that. I guess it is up to you. See what you can do about work and we will go from there." He said as he stood from his chair and collected their plates.

"Where do you want to go?" She asked.

He smiled, "Now that… that will be a surprise… and it depends on how long you can get off work. Actually I just had a thought, maybe we can take the boys and bring a babysitter along. We'll see."

She nodded, "I like that idea. Spinelli is great with the boys and he is good friends with Georgie, maybe we can bring them both."

"You leave it up to me, just find out about work." Jason said. He moved all the dishes to the sink and began rinsing them all off.

"Stop, save the dishes for later." She insisted. "Besides, I cooked dinner, you promised dessert." Before he could dry his hands and turn she was gone from the kitchen. He cursed under his breath when he heard footsteps upstairs above his head, which was their bedroom.

He made his way up to the room, locking the front door and turning off the lights. He had a feeling they were not going to make it back downstairs tonight. He got to the door and found it open only an inch. He pushed it open as she was walking out of the bathroom. His mouth went dry and words escaped him. She had disposed of all her clothes, she was wearing nothing.

He quickly removed his t-shirt and she grabbed his hand to lead him to the bed. He stopped her and tugged on her arm, pulling her back to him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested them on her stomach. He dipped his head and kissed the spot on her neck that drives her insane and it did not disappoint. The instant his lips touched her she lifted her arms above her head and back to wrap around his neck. She let out a soft moan in her throat.

She felt one of his hands move to cover her breast and he began rubbing his thumb over her peaked nipple. Her legs gave out when she suddenly felt his other hand dip below her waist and his fingers explored her soft flesh before he entered her with two fingers causing her to moan. He pumped his hand and felt her breathing quicken while he continued to tease her breasts with his other hand. She moaned his name causing his pants to become tighter.

He felt her tugging on the back of his neck and trying to grind against him. Her head tipped back and their mouths met in a hot and intense kiss. Their tongues were colliding into each other. She hadn't even noticed that they had moved until she felt her knees hit the bed. He removed his hands from her and nudged her back onto the bed. She eagerly watched as he removed his pants and boxer briefs then tossed them aside.

She went to move to the middle of the bed but her stopped her and tugged her to the edge of the bed. He moved her so her thighs were hanging over the side and he knelt on the floor between them. He wrapped her legs over his shoulders and ran his hands up the inside of her thighs. The instant she felt his tongue on her center she let out a loud moan and grasped the blanket below her. "Oh god Jason." Her body started trembling and her breathing quickened. Heat began to rush over her body and her toes burned. Suddenly her body jolted up and it hit her. The waves rushed over her and she let out a moan that sounded more like a scream. He held her there for what felt like hours till her body was finally shattered and she was gasping for a breath.

He stood from the floor and looked down at her on the bed, eyes close, breathing heavy, almost paralyzed. He climbed in and pulled her over so she was laying in the middle of the bed. She finally opened her eyes as he settled his body over hers. "Did that feel good?" he whispered in her ear, his tongue nipping on her earlobe.

"Yea." She simply answered. She could not bring herself to say any more, she was floating, never had she felt an orgasm that intense.

He pulled back to look her in the eye, "I'm not done yet."

She almost came again just by hearing him say that. She moved her legs and wrapped them around his hips, causing his throbbing head to tease her entrance. He slid it up and down her slick flesh, "Jason, please."

"Please what?"

"I need you inside me… oh god please." The sound of her begging nearly made him come right there. He kissed her, nibbled on her lip and before he knew it she had reached between them, guided him to her entrance and thrust her hips up. Her arm wrapped around his forearm while he linked his fingers in her other hand and moved it above her head. He thrust deeper causing her hand to grasp his arm tighter.

As he started moving he placed light kisses on her lips as he whispered to her how beautiful she was and how much he loved her. She moved her hand from his arm to his back, trying to pull him deeper with each thrust. She met his movements and they moaned each others names as he quickened his pace. He felt her beginning to tremor below him and slammed into her harder and quicker then before. Her nails dug into his back and she tightened her grasp on his hand that was still being held above her head.

Seconds later their bodies were shuddering as they came, calling out each others names repeatedly. He collapsed onto his side and pulled her quickly into him then reached for the blanket that was at the bottom of the bed.

Elizabeth let out a deep breath and turned to face him. She kissed him lightly and whispered in his ear, "Rest for now but don't expect to be getting much sleep tonight."

His eyes widened, "Promise?"

She wrapped her arm around him and rested her head next to his. She whispered "We are just getting started."


	47. Chapter 47

Chapter 47

"I wish I didn't have to work tonight." Emily said with a sigh.

"Me too, I wish you could come to the party, help me out dealing with Carly." Elizabeth said holding up two dresses, a green and a black one.

"You can handle Carly better then I can. I think you should get the green one, green is definitely your color." Emily said.

Elizabeth held the dress up in front of her, "Yea, I like it too but I just can't spend that much money on a dress for a party."

Emily reached for the tag and looked at the price. She shrugged her shoulders, "I'll buy it for you if you won't… or better yet I will call Jason and tell him that you aren't buying the dress you want because it is too expensive. Knowing him he would buy it in every color for you."

"Em!"

"I'm not kidding either missy. Get the damn dress." Emily insisted. She turned and looked around the store. "Now that you have your dress for tonight… on to the bridal section."

Elizabeth sucked in a deep breath "You are impossible!" She looked one more time at the $700 price tag and handed it to the sales girl on the way to the bridal section, "I'll take this one."

By the time Elizabeth made it over to the wedding dresses Emily already had a few pulled from the rack for her. "Ok Liz, A-line, short, long, frilly, lacy, empire, strapless… give me a few ideas here on the style."

"Classy and simple, not poofy."

"Ok, you are no help." Emily sighed as she turned back to the racks of dresses.

Elizabeth walked over to the rack where Emily was lining up dresses for her to try on. She quickly thumbed through them, "Ok, you already got me on the green dress but can you please pick out a dress that is under three thousand dollars?"

Emily flipped around and pointed her finger at Elizabeth, "Ok, you need to listen… this is your wedding day, this will be forever because god help my brother if it is not… anyway… you will remember it forever so you need perfection… which means the perfect dress, no matter the cost." She walked over to the rack of dresses and looked at the price tag, "And this is freaking pennies to Jason. Money is just money Liz but happiness and memories are priceless."

Elizabeth shook her head and turned toward the fitting rooms, "Where did you hear that line, it's good… bitch." She joked over her shoulder.

"You love me!" Emily yelled back to her.

---------

"I love you too. I'll see you tonight." Jason closed his phone and entered the coffee house.

He closed the door to Sonny's office and sat down. "Anything on Rick?" he asked.

Sonny leaned back in his chair and rubbed his hand over his chin, "Nothing, I hear that they found nothing. It looks like Rick is going to get away with it again."

"Do you think they will try to off him to cover their tracks?" Jason asked.

"Possible, I'm not sure. Rick has not gone into hiding so he must be pretty confident that they will not come after him. Maybe they will just back off for a little while till the dust settles, maybe use him again or just kill him." Sonny said.

"I take it that you do not want to take care of Rick. I could make it look like they did it." Jason offered.

Sonny shook his head.

"I figured, I don't know how many times you are going to let your brother cross you. He keeps getting away with it, what if he succeeds one of these times Sonny?" Jason said becoming agitated. "He obviously does not care if you live or die."

"I know that Jason!" Sonny said raising his voice. "If we move on Rick it will point to us no matter how we set it up. We need to wait! For now we need to sit tight! With the explosions, Lucky and Sam, we cannot just go take him out, we cannot be reckless here."

"You think I'm being reckless? Letting Rick get away with this is reckless. He has devoted his entire career on bringing us both down, legally or illegally, he does not care… why should we. I can do this Sonny."

"NO, Not yet!" Sonny yelled.

Jason shook his head, "Fine…" He was interrupted by knock on the door. Max opened it and peeked in.

"Boss, Rick Lansing is here to see you."

Sonny looked to Jason and then back to Max. Jason stood from his chair and Rick walked into the office. "Sonny." Rick said.

"What do you want Rick?" Sonny said as Rick slid into the chair that Jason had just been sitting.

"I assume that you know about Lucky and Sam… it's a shame, he was a good detective and she was… well, all three of us know what she could do." Rick said with a snicker.

Jason was repulsed, "What the fuck do you want Rick?" Jason howled.

"Morgan, you think you are so tough. I would have thought that Elizabeth would have had you domesticated by now… changing diapers and shit. She hasn't asked you to leave the business yet?"

Jason took a step toward Rick but Sonny put his arm up.

"Good job Sonny, keep your guard dog back." Rick shot at him. He looked to Jason who was glaring at him through black eyes.

"Rick, are you here for a reason, or do you just want Jason to take you out to the woods for a nice _hike_?" Sonny said.

"That's what I was waiting for. I'm just here to tell you, not that it matters, but I am not involved in this. They think they have evidence but they cannot prove anything because it is all false." Rick explained.

"Whatever Rick, is that all?" Sonny said. "What are you afraid that we will come after you?"

Rick stood from his chair and walked past Jason to the door. "I'm not here begging for my life if that is what you think. I think you know more then you are letting on about what happened down on the docks. I just wanted to known how you managed to get one of the best detectives in Port Charles to cover for you."

"I don't know what you are talking about Rick." Sonny smugly said. "It's a good theory you have there though, humorous."

Before Rick could open the door Jason spoke. "If I ever even here you talk to or even mention Elizabeth's name again… it will be the last word you say."

Rick flashed him a sly smile and left the office.

"Sonny." Jason said under his breath.

"I know Jase, we need more time first though." Sonny said reassuringly. "The time will come though."

---------

Jason let out a growl from his neck. "I hate wearing ties." He was standing in front of the bathroom mirror adjusting his tie. Elizabeth was still wearing her robe but had her hair done and was putting the finishing touches on her make-up.

"I think you look handsome in a suit." She said reassuringly.

He looked at her but did not say anything, just continued to adjust his tie.

"Jason, your tie is fine, it looks perfect."

"It's not fucking straight." He growled.

"Whoa, ok… someone is in a bad mood. You have been quiet since you got home. What is wrong?" She stepped away from the mirror and put her hand on his arm.

"Nothing." He said. He lowered his hand from his tie and walked back into the bedroom.

She followed and grabbed her dress. It was still in the bag from the store. "Well next time nothing is bothering you don't freaking snap at me." She went back into the bathroom and pushed the door shut. "If you are going to act like this all night we might as well stay home." She said loud enough that he could hear it through the door.

She heard him say that he was sorry but it was in a low voice. She sighed and finished getting ready. She pulled her dress on and zipped it up. Luckily it had a side zipper so she did not have to ask him for help. Five minutes later she had finished touching up her make-up and opened the door. He was not in the bedroom. She sat on the bed and put her heels on then stood in front of the mirror to be sure she looked ok. She was shocked when she got her answer.

"Wow."

Jason was standing in the doorway. She could feel his eyes trailing up and down her body. Her dress stopped at her calves, was snug and showed off her curves. It was strapless and he just wanted to grab her and pepper kisses across every inch of her exposed shoulders, neck, back, and… chest.

He walked over to her and stood behind her. He was hesitant to touch her because he was not sure if she was mad at him. His hand touched her side and he looked into her eyes though the mirror. "You are beautiful. After everywhere I have traveled, everyone I have met… you are the more stunning than… breathtaking than." He stopped when she leaned back into him. They stood staring into each others eyes for a few minutes before he spoke. "I'm sorry, I had a bad day. I should not have snapped at you."

She nodded and he kissed her neck, trailing kissed to her shoulder then back to her neck again. A shiver ran over her when he traced his fingertips up her arms. "Ja-Jason."

"Hmm?" he grunted into her neck.

She sucked in a deep breath and whispered, "We should go before we are late… or don't leave at all."

He continued trailing kisses up her neck and kissed her ear, sending another shiver over her. She turned and pulled him down to her by his tie. She tilted her head and leaned in to kiss him but stopped when their lips were less then a centimeter apart. "Let's go." She said as she dipped out of his arms and grabbed her purse. He stood by the mirror still as she walked out the door, turned toward him, blew him a kiss and continued walking down the hallway. He shook his head and bit down on his bottom lip before following her down the steps.


	48. Chapter 48

Chapter 48

Jason and Elizabeth stepped into the elevator. Elizabeth took a deep breath and looked at Jason. His face had a slight smile which was a big change from an hour ago when he was stomping around the bedroom cursing and swearing. Her mind kept flashing to the limo ride. Jason's hands were all over and under her dress. She felt her face flush thinking about it.

"You ok?" Jason asked.

She flashed him a smile, "Yea, I just feel bad for the limo driver. The look on his face." She shook her head and continued, "God Jason… how did we not feel the car stop."

He raised his eyebrows, "Are you kidding me?"

"I know… imagine if a few more minutes went by. At least our clothes were still on." She said.

"Well there is always the ride home…" Before Jason could finish the elevator doors opened. Jason's hand moved to her waist and guided her into the room full of people. They made it to a table and Elizabeth saw Carly coming toward them.

"Here we go." She whispered.

Jason moved his hand from her waist and took her hand in his, linking their fingers. "I'm going to get a drink do you want one?" His eyes narrowed. "I'm getting water Jason… although a little tequila could probably take the edge off." She said with a smirk then turned and headed to the bar, leaving Jason to deal with Carly.

"Jase." Carly said giving him a hug. "I'm so glad you showed up."

He nodded.

"Where did Lizzie run off to? Did she get scared when she saw me?" Carly said with a snicker.

Jason sucked in a deep breath. "Don't start Carly. She went to get us drinks. Where is Jax?"

"He is over talking to some of the guests. Take a seat, I need to talk to you about something." Carly pulled out a chair and motioned for Jason to sit. She swung around and sat in the chair next to him. "I wanted to tell you before you heard from Sonny or the boys or anyone else… I'm pregnant."

Jason's eyes went wide. "Wow Carly, congratulations."

"I know… I mean I wasn't even trying. Actually I wasn't not trying but I didn't think it was possible. Anyway, isn't this fantastic?"

"It's great Carly. I am happy for you." Jason said sincerely.

Elizabeth approached the table and handed Jason his drink. She had gotten him a scotch which surprised him, he had expected a beer. "I figured I'd get you the good stuff since it was on Carly." She said sarcastically. "I would have gotten you a drink Carly but… nah, I wouldn't have."

Carly rolled her eyes, "That's OK, I shouldn't drink anyway."

"Yea, you don't want to get drunk at your own party." Elizabeth said.

"Actually I'm pregnant so I shouldn't drink." Carly shot at her.

Elizabeth looked at Jason and shot him a look at said _'You have got to be kidding me'_. She looked at Carly seriously and said "Congratulations Carly."

Carly was surprised by Elizabeth's sincerity. Her eyes fluttered from side to side, "Thanks."

"How far along are you?" Elizabeth asked.

"I just found out a few days ago, so not very."

Elizabeth bit her bottom lip and nodded her head. She could feel Jason staring at her, gauging her reaction. "Well, congratulations Carly. Be sure to tell Jax I said so too."

One of the waiters came up to Carly and whispered something in her ear. "Well can you ask Jax to do it?" she said to him.

"I did and he told me that you would handle it." He said.

Carly rolled her eyes and stood from her chair. "Have fun Jason." She said then looked at Elizabeth. She opened her mouth to say something but opted to turn and walk away instead.

"Jason, tell me that Carly did not just tell me that she is pregnant… about as pregnant as me… which means we'll be going through our pregnancies _together_. Ugh!" Elizabeth made a face as though she had just sucked on a lemon.

Jason shrugged his shoulders, "But you are the most beautiful pregnant woman I know." He said motioning for her to sit.

"Actually I was wondering if you'd dance with me."

He stood from his seat, took her hand and led her to the dance floor. He pulled her to him and her body instantly molded to his. She felt him place his hand on her lower back and she could feel the heat of his palm though the thin fabric of her dress. She hooked one hand around his neck and rested the other on his chest where he brought his free hand up to cover hers.

They swayed to the music for a few songs, glancing at each other occasionally but just enjoying the calmness they created in each other when their bodies were touching. Jason found it to be amazing that she could calm him down and relax him so easily. He normally did not enjoy dancing but with her he could dance every night, no matter who was around. Their dance was interrupted when he felt a gurgle on his side. He looked down at Elizabeth who was laughing.

"Sorry, I'm hungry." She mumbled.

"Well let's get you some food then. We'll finish dancing later." He led her back to their seat and they ate then chatted with some of the other guests. Elizabeth talked to Robin then Kelly while Jason found Sonny a few tables away. Every few minutes she could feel Jason's eyes on her and she'd meet his eyes.

She saw Carly holding a microphone and she listened as she thanked everyone for coming and noted that it was five minutes till midnight. The guests started to gather and crowd around collecting glasses of champagne. She could not find Jason in the crowd of people. When they started counting down from twenty she felt a hand grab hers and pull her away.

Jason took her outside where she surprisingly found it warm thanks to the large outdoor heaters on the patio. The patio was vacant thanks to the countdown going on inside and before she knew it she heard "ONE" yelled by the crowd inside. Jason's hands wrapped around her head and his lips met hers. She instantly responded to his kiss, her arms wrapped around his waist and she pulled him closer while his mouth dominated hers. His tongue explored her mouth as he pressed her against the wall with his body. She moaned into his mouth and one of his hands trailed down the side of her face to her neck then her shoulder, down across the top of her chest causing her to gasp for a breath. He kissed her chin and trailed down her neck to her spot. The spot that drove her crazy.

"Ah hem."

Elizabeth's eyes shot open, Jason quickly released her and looked over his shoulder. How did he not hear the door open? How… he knew, the same way he didn't feel the limo come to a stop earlier. Elizabeth has a way of causing his senses to go haywire.

Elizabeth felt the redness in her cheeks when Sonny approached them followed closely behind by Kate.

"Sorry to interrupt. Looks like you two had the same idea as we did." Sonny finally said breaking the silence. "Happy New Year."

"Ha-Happy New Year." Elizabeth mumbled "Sorry." She felt like she had just been caught by her Grams.

Jason looked to Sonny who smiled back at him and motioned for Jason to move to the side to talk to him. Jason followed him over toward the railing leaving Elizabeth and Kate alone.

"Happy New Year Elizabeth… Carly sure can throw a party."

"Don't tell her that, she doesn't need a bigger head then she already has." Elizabeth joked.

Kate smiled, "I couldn't agree more." There was another awkward silence before Kate spoke again. "So I hear you and Jason are getting married. Congratulations."

"Thanks, we are hoping sometime in January… or this month."

"Well if you need any help getting any good designer dresses in a rush, let me know." Kate said.

Elizabeth smiled, "That's very nice of you, I will keep that in mind. I actually went looking today and am in the air on two of them."

"Well I'd be happy to help." Kate assured her. Jason and Sonny rejoined them and Jason took Elizabeth's hand, tugging her toward the door.

"Thanks again Kate and Happy New Year to both of you." Elizabeth said as she walked inside with Jason. He led her back to the table where they both sat down. "How red was my face when they came outside? God that was embarrassing."

Jason nodded. Elizabeth took a sip of her water and Jason squeezed her hand. "Happy New Year Elizabeth."

She smiled, "Happy New Year Jason."

"Ready to go?" he asked.

She looked at him confused "But its only like 12:15. You want to go home already?"

He smiled, "No, I want to go to our room."


	49. Chapter 49

Chapter 49

"How long do you think it will be before Carly realizes that we left?" Elizabeth asked as they stepped off the elevator.

Jason smiled, "I don't care right now." Jason reached into his pocket and pulled a keycard out. He opened the door and moved aside so she could enter the room.

The room was dimly lit. On the table on the far side of the room there was a bottle of champagne and 2 glasses as well as a candle. There were a few other candles that were already lit throughout the room, one on each nightstand, one on the dresser and one on the desk. On the desk there also was a vase full of red roses and the small lamp was the only light on in the room to accent the candle light.

"Mr. Morgan, you are quite the romantic. This is perfect." Elizabeth said as she sat her purse on the dresser and walked over to the bottle of champagne. "Only thing is that I can't drink."

He chuckled, "Look at the bottle."

She picked up the bottle and read it out loud. "Sparkling Cider." She laughed the walked over to the bed, kicked her shoes off and sat on the edge. "So, now that we are here, alone, what do you want to do?" She said in with an innocent expression.

"I was thinking maybe play cards or something." He said, kicking his own shoes off and removing his coat.

He put her finger on her chin and looked up at the ceiling "Do I get a choice?" She said teasing. He was now standing in front of her. "Cards could be fun… _or something_ could be… good, I guess."

"Good you guess huh? Well since I didn't bring any cards I'll have to convince you… just good huh?" he said bending over her causing her to lean back on her elbows. He braced himself over her without touching her, his hands were on either side of her shoulders on the bed.

"Good, well maybe I was understating." She teased. "Maybe…" She brought her finger to her chin again and bit her bottom lip. "Umm… amazing… incredible… perfect…" He stopped her thought. His lips descended upon hers but he stopped when they were millimeters apart.

"We could still play cards if you want. I can probably buy some down at the gift shop in the lobby." He whispered.

She smiled and pushed him, causing him to flip onto his back. She took the opportunity to roll on top of him. She slid her dress up to her hips, swung her leg around to straddle him and sat up. She looked down at him and bit her bottom lip. "Well, you can go get a deck of cards and we can play strip poker… or we can pretend we had the cards and both lost." Her hands started unbuttoning his shirt, torturously slow. She started rocking her hips as she pushed his shirt open and leaned down. She was about to kiss him when she whispered, "Nah, no cards…" Her lips met his as her hands tugged his shirt from his pants. His hands had a firm grasp on her thighs and squeezed when her hand dipped below his undershirt and trailed up his chest. His chest muscles flicked under her soft touch.

His hands moved to find the zipper on her dress… unsuccessfully. She laughed into his mouth and pulled herself from his hold. She stood from the bed and lifted her arm, showing Jason where the zipper was. He laid on the bed watching her slowly lower the zipper as the dress slipped away and eventually slipped from her body. She stepped out of it and picked it up, placing it over the chair so it did not wrinkle then pulled the pins from her hair, sending it cascading over her shoulders.

She did not remove her strapless bra or panties, instead she returned to the bed, unbuttoned and removed his pants and boxer briefs. Her helped her remove his shirts and laid back on the bed, giving her control of the situation. She laid next to him with her head propped up on her elbows. "Tell me what you want me to do Jason." She whispered.

Jason's mouth instantly went dry, hearing her say that almost cause it to end before it began. "I-I wa-want you to remove your bra and panties." He mumbled out.

"Tongue tied Mr. Morgan?" she teased as she sat up and flicked the clasp and her bra fell from her body. Elizabeth stood at the end of the bed and slipped her barely there thong down her legs. Standing with no clothes left she asked "Now what?"

"Get over here." He grunted.

She smiled and slid into the bed beside him. "Do you want me here?" she asked. He shook his head. She rolled onto her side facing him, "How about here?" she asked teasingly. He shook his head. She moved to straddle him, "How about here?"

He grabbed the back of her head and pulled her down to kiss him. His tongue attacking her mouth. She grabbed both his hands and linked her fingers in his, pinning them down beside their bodies. Her hips lifted and came back down. He moaned as she slowly lowered herself till he was so deep within her that it was hard to tell where her body stopped and his started.

She slowly rode him driving him to the brink of insanity. She would stop to bend down and kiss his chest, then his neck, then his lips, holding his hands to the side the whole time. He reached his breaking point where he needed control. She bent her head to trail light kisses across his chest again and he too the opportunity to flip them over so he was on top of her. He quickly was in control and thrusting into her fast and deep. His hand covered and teased her breast while the other grabbed a handful of hair while he attacked her mouth with his. Her fingers dug into his back and quickly he felt her nails stabbing at his skin on his lower back with each thrust.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted her slightly off the bed so he could enter her deeper. Her body shuddered and they both moaned each others names. Jason sped his pace more and they came together, moaning each others names.

He moved them under the covers and laid together till their breathing returned to normal. Elizabeth was the first to move. She sat up and moved to get out of the bed but his hand came up and caught her arm before she could.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"To get dressed. It is going to take me a while to get the dress back on and my hair back up."

He shook his head, "No, not yet. I told Spinelli we'd be home late and to just crash in the spare room if he gets tired. We are not done here yet."

"Oh yea?" She said, laying back down beside him and trailing her fingertips over his chest. "What else do you want to do? Is there somewhere else you want me?" she asked in a low, seductive tone.

"I have a few more places in mind." He promised.

---------

Elizabeth awoke to the smell of bacon permeating through the house, causing a flutter in her stomach. The flutter quickly changed to nausea and she ran from the bed to the bathroom. Kicking the door shut she barely made it to the toilet before her first bout of morning sickness overcame her.

She emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later and made her way downstairs. She heard voices as she came down the steps and the smell of the bacon grew stronger. Peaking into the kitchen she saw Spinelli, Cameron and Jake all sitting around the table and Jason at the stove frying bacon and eggs. She stood in the doorway and watched Spinelli interacting with Cameron and Jake. He would talk to Cameron then periodically lean over and tickle Jake or place more cereal on his high chair tray.

"Nelli, can we play trains after breakfast?" Cameron asked as he wheeled his small train across the edge of the table.

Spinelli smiled, "I would love to Camster."

Spinelli fit so well into their family. Elizabeth enjoyed the fact that both her boys loved and trusted him. She knew that Spinelli had little or no family and was glad that he could be part of hers. Jason had pretty much given him the penthouse which showed that Jason trusted and cared for him, which was a hard thing to earn from Jason.

"Fair Elizabeth, you are awake." Spinelli said, noticing her standing in the doorway.

She nodded and entered the kitchen. "Good morning my boys, all of you." She went around the table kissing them all on the top of their head, including Spinelli then walked over to the stove. Jason turned and bent his head, kissing her lightly on the lips.

"Are you ok? You look a little pale." He asked worried.

She nodded, "I'm fine, a little morning sickness but feeling pretty good today." She winked at him and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge.

Jason placed a plate in front of Cameron then Spinelli. He looked at Elizabeth who just shook her head. "Are you ok fair Elizabeth? You don't want breakfast?" Spinelli asked.

"I'm not feeling very well this morning so I am just going to have a piece of toast." She said.

"Ahh, I see, the Eve has taken another victim. A sacrifice you make for the alcohol gods." Spinelli said.

Elizabeth caught Jason's glance and looked away, "I guess so." She mumbled. "Spinelli, do you have plans for dinner? We are having my Grams and Monica over for dinner and I would love if you could join us."

"I could never impose on your family bonding time." He said.

"Spinelli, you are practically part of our family and it would not be imposing, in fact, I insist. Dinner is at 6."

Spinelli nodded, "I couldn't."

"Spinelli, stop arguing this." Jason said sitting at the table with a plate for himself.

Spinelli smiled, "I would love to join your family for dinner."

---------

I hope I do Liason smut justice. Obviously they are in their 'can't keep their hands off each other' phase. Thanks again for all the great feedback. Every time I decide where I am going to end this I add more to my outline.


	50. Chapter 50

Chapter 50

Rick wiped at his forehead "I can assure you that they will find no definitive evidence that will link either me or your organization to the incidents on the docks."

"Let's hope that you have covered your tracks well, otherwise I can assure you that you will not like the outcome." The voice said.

"It will not come to that. I will be in touch." Rick said. He placed the pre-paid phone in his pocket then heard a knock at his door. He opened it and found Alexis standing on the other side.

Alexis pushed past Rick and placed her bag in the table inside the door. She turned back to Rick, "Tell me Rick, is it true?"

"Is what true?" he asked.

"Stop playing dumb Rick… were you involved in whatever Lucky and Sam were involved in?" She shot at him.

He shook his head, "Come on Alexis, I operate on the correct side of the law… I put the criminals away."

"Rick, we both know that you are as much a criminal as Sonny… in fact sometimes I think you are worse. Sonny seems to have a bigger conscience then you do. I am trying to figure out the truth behind my daughters death."

"I don't know what you want me to say Alexis. I have not talked to Sam in weeks." Rick said.

"Stop lying to me Rick. I find it hard to believe that Lucky and Sam would do all this on their own."

"They didn't do it on their own Alexis. They were apparently recruited by crime family to take down Jason and Sonny." Rick stated.

"Rick, stop lying to me. I can see it in your eyes… you know more then you are saying. If you were the one that got Sam and Lucky involved with them, so help me god, you will pay. I don't care that we share a daughter."

Rick turned to open the door, motioning for her to leave. "Well it's a good thing you wont find anything then because I was not involved. I am sorry that you lost your daughter Alexis."

---------

Twenty minutes later Alexis arrived at the Quartermaine mansion. "Good afternoon Alice, I am here to see Luke if he is available." She said walking into the foyer.

"Good afternoon Ms. Davis, Mr. Luke is in the study." Alice said.

Alexis walked into the study. "Luke." She called.

"Ahh, Natasha, have you come here to drown your sorrows with me? Tracey is out of town for a the day so I don't have her controlling my diet… which includes this wonderful bourbon." He held up his glass.

Alexis placed her purse on the couch and walked over to Luke, "I don't want to drink with you Luke. I've come here to let you know that I am going to Miami. I am going to start an investigation of my own. I want to know if Sam really was involved."

Luke laughed, "Are you insane? These people may not be as forgiving as Corinthos when it comes to knowledge of the inner working of their business. If you let them think that you know anything about what has gone down, they may quiet you up, permanently."

"I don't know anything, that's the point. I know what I am doing though, I have an idea of how I am going to approach the situation. Aren't you the least bit curious Luke?"

"Of course I am curious Natasha… are you here to invite me?" he asked winking at her.

She rolled her eyes, "You know your son and my daughter are dead, you'd think that you'd be a little more upset."

"And you don't think I am?" Luke said, his voice raising. He slammed his drink on the desk. "I want to know who is responsible for this and I want to kill him. Unfortunately I am getting a self defense story from Mac."

"If their story is true then I want to know what led to it, why did they get involved. I am just so confused, I know Sam was a little troubled but I just cannot fathom that she would go this far, don't you wonder the same thing about Lucky?"

"When are you leaving?" Luke asked with a sigh.

"After the funerals, probably tomorrow night."

Luke's hand fluttered in the air toward Alexis, "Well fuel up the Cassadine jet, looks like we are heading to warmer climates."

---------

"Grams!" Cameron hugged Audrey the moved to Monica next to her "Grandma!".

The women closed the door and walked over to the couch where Elizabeth was sitting with Jake. "Happy New Year." Elizabeth said standing from the couch and hugging both women. "Did you two ride over together?"

"Yea, I picked up Audrey on my way here. We will be in-laws soon enough." Monica said with a wink. The women all sat and played with the boys, talking about the wedding and things they plan to do around the house.

Monica shook her head, "I don't know how you did it but my son is so happy Elizabeth." Elizabeth smiled, wishing she could tell the women that they had another grandchild on the way but bit her tongue when she had the urge.

Audrey holding Jake who was dozing off in her arms. She turned to Monica, "Monica, I should have known… my goodness he looks so much like Jason."

Monica nodded, "I know, his eyes… Lila's eyes." The women nodded.

As if on cue, Jason and Spinelli entered the house. Jason said an awkward "Hey." Then made his way to Elizabeth, greeting each older woman with a hug then Elizabeth with a soft peck on her lips.

"Greetings." Spinelli said. He was still standing by the door and seemed nervous.

"Grams and Monica, you both know Spinelli. He is joining us for dinner… he is a good friend to me and Jason and has helped us a lot."

Spinelli smiled, "Fair Elizabeth you are way gracious as is Stone..." Jason shot him a look of death. "I mean Jason." Elizabeth giggled thinking that was probably the first time that she had heard Spinelli call Jason his real name.

A short time later Jason and Spinelli were playing outside with Cameron and Jake slept while Elizabeth started dinner. Monica and Audrey helped her in the kitchen making salad and pretty much taking over cooking dinner which Elizabeth did not mind.

"I don't mean to bring up a hard subject but will you be attending the funerals tomorrow?" Audrey asked.

"I'm back and forth on that. I have off from work but I just don't know. First, I have not told Cameron about Lucky, I'm not sure if he would understand. But, I don't know if I am welcome there. I know Nicholas would not have a problem but Luke and Lulu, I just don't know how they feel. I don't want to make it harder on them then it already is."

"I think you should go dear." Audrey said.

"So do I, you two were in love once… you were married and happy. It seems like so long ago and he changed so much over the past few years… but you need to mourn the Lucky that you used to love." Monica said.

Elizabeth nodded, "I'm not going to Sam's, there is no question about that. I asked Jason if he wanted to go but he said no and I am not pushing that subject."

"They always had a rocky relationship, probably because he always had a thing for you, even if he didn't realize it consciously." Monica said.

Audrey smiled, "I think it was mutual on Elizabeth's part too." She turned to Monica, "I must say, when I first found out that Jake was Jason's I was very upset. Jason doesn't exactly have a good reputation when it comes to obeying the law, but I have learned that he is not what he does. Jason is a good man and father who has a good heart. I know that he will do anything to protect his family and friends."

"Me and Jason have definitely had our disagreements where his job is concerned but I have always know that he has a good heart." Monica said.

Elizabeth was touched by Audrey's declaration. "Thank you for saying that Grams… and since you think he is so great, why don't you go tell him and the boys to clean up for dinner for me."

After dinner they all sat around talking and taking turns playing with the boys.

"So why did you decide to move up the wedding?" Monica asked.

Elizabeth looked at Jason really quick and he motioned for her to answer, "Well we just figured why wait."

"I thought you wanted a spring wedding." Audrey added.

"Well I can still have my outdoor wedding this month, they have these amazing outdoor heaters and fireplaces we are going to get, they actually had the heaters at the Metrocourt last night and they work great. Plus what is the point of waiting, if we can have everything we want now." Elizabeth rambled.

Audrey gave Elizabeth a suspicious look but dropped the subject as did Monica. "Well Audrey, we better head out." Monica said standing from her seat. Audrey stood as well. "Thank you for having us for dinner."

"Yes, everything was delicious." Audrey added.

"Well probably because you both cooked about 75 of it." Elizabeth laughed.

Once the women were gone Spinelli stood, "Fair Elizabeth, Stonecold, thank you for inviting me into your home for the scrumptious feast. It is time for me, as well, to return to my abode."

Elizabeth laughed, "You're welcome here anytime Spinelli."

Jason nodded to him as he left and took a seat on the couch beside Elizabeth who was holding a sleeping Jake.

"Well, that went good, I think." She laughed.

"When Monica and Audrey were giving you the third degree about the wedding date I thought you were going to crack. You could tell them you know." Jason said.

She nodded, "I know, not yet thought. For now it is our secret.. well ours and Emily's." She took in a deep breath, "I think I am going to Lucky's funeral. They helped me realize that I need to do it."

Jason nodded, "I know. Love you."

"I love you too."


	51. Chapter 51

Chapter 51

Rick stood in his office glancing around. He let out a snicker and took a seat at his desk. He rummaged through the files that were piled on his desk, unsatisfied with what he found he flicked on his computer and impatiently waited for it to boot. He tapped his fingertips on his desk till it was ready for his use.

He opened his case archive and scrolled through till he found the one he was looking for… _Lorenzo Alcazar murder trial, Jason Morgan defendant_ was the title of the court transcript.

Rick sat reading when he was interrupted by a knock on the door to his office. He minimize the program and opened one of the random files that were sitting on his desk. "Come in."

Mac entered, "D.A. Lansing, can I have a minute of your time?" he asked.

Rick flashed a half smile, "Sure commissioner, come on in."

"Welcome back." Mac mumbled insincerely.

"We both knew there was no proof, I am innocent." Rick stated.

Mac crossed his arms on his chest, "Rick, we have to work together, whether we like it or not. Whether I like you or you like me, I do not want this investigation to damage the work we do here."

"And what work is that Mac, bringing in the bad guys?" Rick laughed, "Funny, I don't see that happening. Morgan and Corinthos… their business is thriving… growing. What do we do, go after each other instead of them."

"I want to take them down as much as the next person… but legally. I am not going to entrap them, lie or break the law to bring them down. That would make me no better then them. I think you should follow my example." Mac said.

"Follow your example. For years you have been unable to catch Sonny and Jason…"

Mac cut him off, "Correction Rick, I have been able to catch him, you have been unable to convict him. You need to get past your personal issues with them and focus on your job. As long as you keep this vendetta you will never win… and Rick, I know that you are a good lawyer."

"That's so sweet of you Commissioner, now I'm days behind on my work if you don't mind." Rick looked back to the file in front of him, disinterested but Mac took the cue and left the office. Rick looked back to his computer screen and clicked the mouse bringing the case back to his computer screen. Satisfaction… he would definitely feel satisfaction.

---------

Elizabeth was dressed in a black pantsuit and her hair was back in a ponytail. Jason had insisted that Max drive her to and from the funeral. She sat staring out the window, unsure of her feelings about Lucky. Was she relieved that he was dead? Sad? She had thought about it a lot… she felt both. She was sad because she truly loved Lucky, the Lucky she fell in love with years ago. At the same time she was relieved. The Lucky she knew over the past couple years, the one she married was only a small fraction of the Lucky she loved. She was relieved that he could not hurt her anymore… and that he would not hurt Jason.

Max pulled the SUV to a stop in front of the church.

"Thank you for driving me Max." he nodded and did not reply. He climbed out and opened her door for her. She made her way toward the door and turned to see Max leaning against the car watching her. She knew that he would be standing in that same position when she returned.

Elizabeth reached the door and sucked in a deep breath as she grabbed the handle. She entered the church and found it was full, Bobbie, Mike, Luke, Tracey, Lulu, Nicholas… they were all there. Many cops from the PCPD were there as well as Rick Lansing. She sat in a pew in the back of the church and did not speak to anyone or offer her condolences.

She spotted Emily and Monica talking at the front of the church and did not move when they started toward her.

"I'm glad you came Liz." Emily said pulling Elizabeth into a tight hug. Elizabeth felt Monica's hand on her shoulder and her eyes welled up. The three women stood exchanging nice memories before the service began. A short time later they were all seated, Emily and Monica at the front and Elizabeth alone in the back, barely visible to the other mourners.

The service began with a quick prayer then a Eulogy by Nick. He did well and outlined the good qualities that Lucky had, all of which Elizabeth agreed with and smiled when she thought about Lucky when they were young.

They opened the service up to anyone attending to say words, memories or feelings of Lucky. Lulu was the first to speak. She got through her first sentence and broke down, falling to the ground crying. Logan went to the front to console her and helped her back to her seat.

Luke was next, he looked at the picture of Lucky sitting next to the coffin "Well cowboy, it looks like you are going on one last adventure. You are going to have to start this one alone." He looked back to the dozens of eyes on him and noticed one set sitting in the back, alone. He met her eyes and spoke, "My son had a hard life. It is hard enough having the last name Spencer but he fought through it and made a good life for himself. He got himself a good job… a family. He fought through the demons of this world…" He glared at Elizabeth. A few others saw his glare and turned in Elizabeth's direction. "Look, there is one now, Elizabeth, his beautiful ex-wife. He loved her very much. They had that young love… Elizabeth, you made my son so happy, then you completely broke him, you manipulating, lying, cheating…" he sighed and saw many eyes turn curious. "… anyway enough about her. He…"

That was all Elizabeth heard. Her face flushed and she ran from her seat as fast as she could. She exited the church and saw Max standing exactly where she had left him, as she had expected. "I take it did not go good." He said as he opened her door for her.

She climbed in the car, "Max, can you take me somewhere?"

He nodded and drove her to the destination she requested. "I'll be back in a few minutes." He stayed in the car and watched her approach the house.

Elizabeth sat on a bench on the porch of the Spencer house. She spoke in almost a whisper.

"Lucky, I know you probably don't want to hear this but I'm sorry. I'm sorry for how all of this turned out. I know I am partly to blame. I pushed you over the edge, I lied to you, I betrayed you. For that words cannot express the guilt I feel and will feel for the rest of my life. You were always there for me, you loved me when I felt I did not deserve love. "

"I wanted a family and loved you so much it hurt. When we were young I would dream about marrying you and having kids… grandkids… dogs, all of it. I guess along the way we grew up, grew apart, and neither of us wanted to admit it. Instead we chose to hurt each other. You were my best friend, I never wanted this to happen Lucky. I still love you so much, I always will love that boy that used to sneak into my window."

"When I took those vows, I meant them. I would have stayed with you forever. I know that your love did not fade as mine didn't. The more we stayed together the more miserable we became. When you were addicted to the pain killers and I caught you with Maxi my heart broke. I was lost and sad… and I felt alone. Jason helped me put the pieces of my heart back together Lucky."

"I see now that we were each others first love. Everyone has that first love. The one that you grow up with, experience new things with, first date, first kiss, first love. You were my first love… I will carry that and you with me always… but Jason is my soul-mate, I hope you can understand that."

"I have to move on from everything that has happened Lucky. I need to get past this and live my life with Jason… a man you despised. Despite that I love him, he loves me and I know that he would never hurt me. Please understand that."

"When he is older I will tell Cameron about you, who you were to me and how you helped me… and loved me. I will tell him stories of us and hope that he will remember you as well."

Elizabeth stood from the bench and wiped the tears from her eyes. She stepped off the porch and looked back that the house that was once her home. "I will always love you Lucky."

She took a deep breath and walked back to the car then home to Jason.


	52. Chapter 52

Chapter 52

After the funeral service the attendees gathered outside the church having quiet conversations. Emily and Nicholas were obviously annoyed at Luke's ill-mannered comments during the service but decided that they would not say anything today. It was not the time, they were here to mourn their friend and brother and did not want to fight.

Bobbie was standing with Carly when Luke finally exited the church and approached them. "Luke are you ok?" Bobbie asked worriedly.

"I'm fine Barbara Jean, I just can't believe she showed her face here… after everything she did to him."

Bobbie reached for his arm, "Luke, you are being hard on her. I am not sticking up for her but we are not in the position to judge, not with the mistakes we have made, all of us."

He glared at her for a minute and went to walk away before Carly opened her mouth, "I agree with you."

"Thank you Carly." Bobbie said.

Carly chuckled, "Not you mom, I agree with what he said."

Luke nodded in acknowledgement and headed toward Lulu.

"Carly, you cannot be serious. He had everyone looking at her…" she trailed off and stood in silence for a minute. "I just… a funeral is not the place to air your dirty laundry or anyone else's. Nor is it a place to take cheap shots, especially when you yourself has made mistakes in the past as well."

Carly stared at her mother stunned that she was on Elizabeth's side. "You are taking Elizabeth's side?"

Bobbie shook her head, "Carly, there are no sides anymore. Lucky is dead… Sam is dead… all because of anger, revenge…" she paused "…mistakes."

---------

Elizabeth spent the rest of the day cleaning her house in an attempt to keep her mind off the events of the morning, although she kept telling herself it was nesting due to the pregnancy. When the laundry was done she moved on to dusting then she scrubbed the bathrooms. Once that was done she moved on to the kitchen. She even got down on the floor and scrubbed it. That is where Jason found her when he arrived home with the boys.

Jason observed Elizabeth. She was wearing sweatpants and one of his t-shirts. Her hair was falling out of her ponytail and little curls formed around the edges or her hair line. Her eyes were slightly red as were her cheeks. He could see the emotion and exhaustion in her eyes.

"Whoa, looks like mommy had a busy day." Jason mumbled to the boys as they stood in the doorway to the kitchen.

Cameron instantly ran up to Elizabeth and gave her a hug. "Did you have fun with Grams today?" she asked in a tired voice.

Cameron nodded.

Jason walked over to Elizabeth holding Jake in his arm and extended his other to help her off the floor. He pulled her to him and kissed her lightly. He felt that her body was tense and tired. "I missed you."

She sleepily looked into his eyes, "I missed you too."

Jason looked down at Cameron, "Hey Cam, I have an idea buddy. How about we order a pizza and watch Charlie and the Chocolate factory tonight?"

Cameron jumped up and down yelling "Yeah!"

Jason turned to Elizabeth, "How about mommy goes upstairs and takes a nice bath and relaxes."

She smiled and nodded her head. They all walked into the Livingroom and Jason placed Jake on the play mat on the floor. "Cam, why don't you play with your brother for a minute."

Cameron nodded, picked up a squeaky stuffed duck and began squeezing it to gain Jake's attention. Jason and Elizabeth watched as Jake intently stared, following Cameron's movements with the small toy.

"You are a good big brother." Elizabeth said as she walked over to the stairs. Jason quickly went to her side and scooped her up in his arms. "Jason, I'm ok. I can make it up the steps"

"Elizabeth, you are pregnant with my child and you have had a tiring and emotional day." He started up the steps. "Please let me help you, I want to take care of you."

She did not contest anymore, just wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered how much she loved him. Once he reached the bedroom, he kicked the door open and carried her to the bathroom, gently setting her down on the cold tile floor. He reached for the tub and started the water, holding his hand under it till the temperature was perfect. He turned back to her and cupped her face in his palms. "Now, relax, don't worry about the boys, I'll take care of them." He kissed her tenderly and turned toward the door. "I'll order pizza, take your time."

---------

A while later Elizabeth finally made her way downstairs. She had rested in the bathtub for a bit then dressed herself and laid down on the bed. She stared at the ceiling, crying… sad tears then happy tears followed by tears of exhaustion.

She found Jason slouched on the couch holding Jake in his arms. Cameron was snuggled into Jason's side and both young boys were sleeping. Even though she was behind them she could tell that Jason was staring at the TV but not watching it, just staring absently. She walked up beside Jason and peeked into the kitchen catching a glimpse of the pizza box on the counter.

Elizabeth ran her fingers through his hair and tapped on his chin to nudge him to look at her. When he did his eyes showed exhaustion as hers did. "Thank you." She whispered. He managed a slight smile and took her hand in his, turned it, kissed her palm then nuzzled it against his cheek.

"There is pizza in the kitchen if you are hungry."

She shook her head and reached down for Jason to hand her Jake. He kissed the baby on his temple then passed him to Elizabeth. She turned with him and made her way to the steps, he followed close behind with Cameron. Once the boys were in their beds Jason went downstairs, locked the door and turned out the lights. He returned to their bedroom and found Elizabeth laying in the bed.

"Are-are you ok?" he asked.

She nodded. Jason kicked off his shoes, jeans and t-shirt then climbed into bed next to Elizabeth, laying on his side facing her. "It has been a long few days." She nodded again. "I am here if you want to talk about it. I know you probably don't want to talk to me about it and I understand but…" he sighed, "I'm here."

She reached her hand and trailed her fingers along his shoulder and down his arm. "You are wonderful, have I told you that today? Have I told you that I love you today?" she whispered.

He flashed her a half smile, "Yes to both."

"I'm ok Jason, it was just draining. I am glad I went though." She sucked in a deep breath. "Although I cannot say the same for Luke, he was not too happy to see me there."

He nodded, "Emily called me and told me."

"I couldn't stay, partially because of what he said did hurt but the other part… I didn't want to be a distraction."

Jason had a confused look, "Distraction?"

"Maybe that's the wrong word but… I mean… I didn't want people to focus on Luke's anger or what happened between me and Lucky or any of that… know what I mean?" He nodded. "So I left, I said my goodbye my own way."

He did not ask her to elaborate, he had talked to Max as well and he had filled him in on the stop at Lucky's house.

He reached and brushed a damp curl from her face that had escaped her ponytail. "I love you Elizabeth."

"I love you too." She took his hand in her and linked her fingers between his. "You look so tired too… bad day?"

"It was… till I made it home to you."

She smiled. The laid together, staring into each others eyes, simply enjoying each others presence, reading each others emotions through their eyes then both drifted off to sleep.


	53. Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Elizabeth stepped off the elevator, snuck past the nurses station and into Dr. Lee's office. She did not want anyone, even Epiphany, to know about her pregnancy before the wedding. She only had to get through this, her initial appointment, without anyone finding out. She changed into her paper gown and sat on the exam table waiting for Dr. Lee.

The door opened and Kelly walked in carrying a folder. "Well Elizabeth, it looks like we were right last week, you are pregnant huh?"

Elizabeth smiled, "I was not lying though, I did not know at that point. I took a home test and it was positive."

"I'll run another test on you but the home ones are pretty accurate anymore as you know." Kelly sat on a stool next to Elizabeth and ran through a string of questions then examined her. Thirty minutes later Elizabeth was back in her clothes and Kelly returned to the exam room.

"Ok, you are pregnant as you already know. I figure that you are about six weeks but we won't know exactly how far along you are until you have your first ultrasound but you don't have to get it for a few weeks. I'm going to give you a tentative due date of August 12th."

"That seems so far away." Elizabeth whined.

"Well Liz my dear, it seems that two times Jason has managed to get you pregnant while you were using birth control. Now that's a man." Elizabeth blushed. "He's got some powerful swimmers."

"I like to think that we are just very compatible." Elizabeth joked then her face became serious. "I'm not telling anyone till after the wedding."

Kelly had a confused look on her face, "Till the spring?"

"No, we moved it up, it is on the 19th… you'll get your invitation… although it may not come in the mail." Elizabeth laughed. "We will probably just invite everyone in person or something. I'm having lunch with Emily today to go over the final details before she leaves on her honeymoon tomorrow."

"I can't believe she still hasn't left, I guess circumstances…" she changed the subject, "Anyway, I'll make myself available that day. I need a date so if Jason has any friends as good as…" she cleared her throat, "Well let me know."

Elizabeth smiled and went to the door, "Eememeber, please don't tell anyone."

"Hey, I'm your doctor, I'm bound to secrecy."

---------

Audrey opened the door, and moved aside for Jason to enter. "Good afternoon Jason. Jake is down for his nap. I have his things together for you." She bent down and grabbed a bag from the floor and handed it to Jason. "Cameron is upstairs watching a movie."

"Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to you about something before I leave?" Jason said with aprehension.

She nodded, "What is it?" She leaned on the arm of her couch and watched the big tough mob man… shy? Nervous?

"I-I was ummm… I am trying to plan a honeymoon. Elizabeth is supposed to find out today about getting time off work. I am new at this and don't quite know the rules when I already have a family. Do I take them with me, could you babysit them, or do I bring all of us?" He asked earnestly.

She smiled, "I don't really know the rules either."

He nodded, "Well, ideally I would like the boys there, I think Cameron would love to ride on a plane. Jake is a little young…"

Audrey raised an eyebrow, "You want your kids with you on your honeymoon?"

She would not bet money on it but she could have sworn that she saw Jason Morgan blush a little. "Well, yes and no. I was thinking that we could go and the kids could join us after a few days… not just because I know they would have fun but also because I'd like to go away for more then 3 days and I think that Elizabeth would miss them too much… and so would I."

"She would." Audrey stated.

"I guess my question is… would you like to bring the boys. I could set it up so that you are not traveling alone, perhaps Spinelli could join you. All costs would be covered by me, of course."

Audrey's eyes lit up. "You are offering me a vacation with my great-grandsons?"

Jason nodded, relieved at her response. "Would you like to know where before you decide?" She nodded. "Italy."

"Oh Jason… she has wanted to go there so bad."

He nodded, "I wish it would be a little warmer but I don't want to go to the Caribbean or anything. There is a villa on the southern coast that is beautiful, I have stayed there before. I hope to stay there for 5 or 6 days then head north for a few more days."

"Italy…" Audrey took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll go pack my bag now." She laughed.

He smiled. "Good… I will get you the details, you will be on our private jet or a charter so you may bring company if you would like… just be sure that Elizabeth does not find out. I don't plan on telling her until the plane lands."

"I think I have an idea of someone I might want to take."

Jason's head turned, "Who is…"

Cameron came running into the room before they could finish. "Daddy!"

"Hey buddy. Did you have fun with Grams today?"

Cameron nodded, "Jakey is sweeping."

"I'll go get him and get his coat on him." Audrey said and excused herself from the room leaving Jason wondering who she would want to bring.

---------

Elizabeth and Cameron were knealing on the floor in the Livingroom, each with crayons and paper. Jason walked up behind them and admired their work. Cameron was young but it was obvious that he had acquired his mothers artistic ability. Cameron was attempting to draw his motorcycle and was doing surprisingly well.

"Good job Cam." Jason said and patted him on his head. "So are you." He said and patted Elizabeths head. She rolled her eyes. He finally caught a glimpse of her picture that actually looked like Cameron exactly how he was sitting. She was drawing a portrait of him with crayons. "Don't roll your eyes, I want that when you are done."

She rolled her eyes again and put down her crayon. He had Jake is his arm and moved to sit on the couch where he began tossing him in the air and tickling him. Between throwing Jake in the air and tickling him Jason managed to get a few words out. "August huh?"

Elizabeth laughed, "Is Jason Morgan anxious?" she teased.

He ignored her teasing, "I forgot to ask you when you got home, did you talk to Epiphany when you were at the hospital for your appointment?"

"Yea." She stated simply.

"And?" he asked, anxiously again as he tossed Jake in the air.

"She said I can take a couple days."

His head popped up, "What… only 2?"

"How long do I need?" she asked and batted her eyelashes.

Jason lowered Jake to his chest and patted his back. "I was thinking a couple weeks."

"A-A COUPLE WEEKS!"

His eyes widened, "Ok, so is that too long? We won't be gone for two weeks but you may need a few days to recover when we get back." He said with a wink.

Elizabeth walked over to the couch and sat beside Jason, "It's not that I don't want to spend that much time with you, I'd love to… I'll just… miss the boys." He opened his mouth to speak but she continued, "I have never been away from them for more then a couple days and even 10 days is too much. I was thinking a week at most."

"Okay, how about this. Take the two weeks off from work and we will go away for a week then come back to the boys for a week before going back to work." He suggested.

Elizabeth swayed her head from side to side and said "That sounds pretty good."

"Good." He said and leaned in to her and sealed it with a kiss. He did not want to tell her any more then he had to, surprising her with the boys was going to be hard and probably impossible but he wanted to try.


	54. Chapter 54

Chapter 54

"So everything is all set?" Elizabeth asked as she moved the phone from one ear to the other.

"I think so. We have the food, décor, guest list, dresses, everything is planned. You just need to confirm everything next week." Emily said.

Elizabeth sighed, "I'm sorry for throwing all of this on you right before you leave on your honeymoon. What time are you leaving?"

"Stop apologizing, you are marrying my brother, I would do anything for either of you. We are leaving in about an hour."

"I forgot to tell you the other day, guess who is pregnant." Elizabeth said.

"Umm, is this a trick question?" Emily asked.

"Carly."

"Nuh uh!"

"Yep, she is about as far along as I am. I didn't share about me but talk about fate, me and Carly pregnant together… lord help me."

"You know she is going to pull the whole, _'Lizzie only got pregnant because I was and she needs the attention'_.

"I know Em, I dread the day that she finds out." Elizabeth sighed.

"Oh… not to change the subject but don't forget to call the florist, you need to finalize exactly what you want and where in the final plan… and make sure you get Jason's ring size so you can pick up his ring." Emily rambled out.

"I won't forget, it is all on my list. I'm going to work on everything this morning and try to get as much done as I can. We have court at 2:00 but Diane said that we should be in and out in minutes." Elizabeth said.

"I wish I could be there, Jason is probably so happy."

Elizabeth chuckled, "Actually I think he is nervous… I mean he is happy, definitely happy but… I don't know, maybe he is afraid everything is going too good." Elizabeth laughed, "Ok, well maybe not too good, things have been crazy but all of a sudden it seems like everything is falling into place. It scares me so I'm sure it worries him."

"Stop that right now, you both deserve to be happy. You are going to one happy family… one big happy family." Emily said with a chuckle.

"How is Nicholas doing?" Elizabeth asked.

"He is feeling better. Then with Lucky and Sam, its hard on him but he will get through it."

"Of course he will, he has you Em."

"Don't get to stressed out while I am gone, take care of the boys and that future niece or nephew of mine. You can call me anytime."

Elizabeth laughed, "Yea, you will not catch me calling you on your honeymoon, I will not take the chance of interrupting anything. You can call me if you have the time."

"Love you Liz."

"I love you too Em, have fun."

Elizabeth hung up with Emily and began making phone calls to finalize the plans for the wedding. On the way to the courthouse they dropped Jake off at Audrey's house. Jason wanted to make the day about Cameron. Diane met them in the hallway outside the courtroom. When their case was called the judge asked for background on Cameron's biological father, he asked if there was anyone in the court that opposed the adoption. Then the judge asked Jason a few questions before smacking his gavel on the desk and stating that a new birth certificate would be issued within 2 weeks.

Diane turned and winked to Elizabeth then ushered them out of the courtroom. Once in the hallway she said, "Congratulations Cameron, Jason is your daddy now." She turned to Jason "Congratulations Jason, if you will excuse me I need to go get the paperwork from the clerk."

Elizabeth could see Jason's eyes gleaming. He did not say much, just hugged Cameron when they left the courtroom and asked him what he wanted to do next, that they could do whatever he wanted.

Cameron placed his pointer finger on the corner of his mouth and looked up at the ceiling "Hmmm. I want to go to the beach."

Elizabeth laughed and kneeled in front of Cameron, "Cam, honey, it's a little cold for the beach. We can go if it really is what you want but it won't be any fun."

Cameron frowned, "Ok, can we go get food, I'm hungwy."

"Anywhere you want." Jason said.

"Can we see Mike and get ice cream?" Cameron asked.

Jason nodded and Cameron ran down the hall toward the doors. Elizabeth turned to Jason, took his hand and they followed in Cameron's path.

---------

Sonny was sitting in his study on the phone. Max lightly knocked on the door and entered. He walked over to the front of Sonny's desk and waited for Sonny to hang the phone up.

"Boss, you wanted to be alerted if there was any information on the Perez's" Max said.

Sonny leaned back in his chair and nodded. "What do you have?"

"Luke and Alexis." Max said.

"What!" Sonny said shooting forward in his chair and standing up.

"We don't have much information yet but our sources say that they were seen with Joey Perez. How do you want us to handle this boss?" Max asked.

Sonny wiped his hand across his face and let out a deep breath. "I am going to guess that they are trying to do their on investigation, getting themselves killed in the process. Don't do anything, let me know the second they are back in Port Charles… or if any other information comes in."

Max turned to walk out "Max, wait… I have something I need you to do."

Max stopped and turned back to Sonny, "What is it boss?"

"Set up a meeting with Skye. She has been too quiet during all of this. She still has that waterfront property and I want to know what she plans to do with it. Rick has been nosing around and getting way too close to her lately."

Max shook his head, "You think she will sell it to Rick, he doesn't have that kind of money."

"We don't know what kind of money he has since everything went down… besides he could be brokering it, I don't know. Keep one of our men on him as well." Sonny said.

"Sure thing." Max said with a nod.

"I am guessing that we haven't gotten anything on the bug we planted at her house?"

Max shook his head, "No, just her every day activities. No business or visits from anyone of interest."

Sonny shook his head and returned to his chair at his desk as Max disappeared through the doorway.

No sooner had Sonny picked up his phone when Carly came barging into his office followed closely by Max. "Sorry boss."

Sonny waved Max out, "What now Carly… I'm busy."

"We need to talk." She said abruptly.

"And you couldn't use the phone… or even use it to let me know you were coming over?"

"Will you shut up and listen to me Sonny? This is important." She said crossing her arms over her chest.

He threw his arms up and walked over to his mini bar, grabbed a bottle of water and took a sip. "Well are you going to talk?"

She huffed, "Jason and Elizabeth moved up their wedding."

"I know this already Carly." Sonny said.

"Well don't you think it strange?"

"It's none of my business Carly, nor is it yours."

"Jason is my best friend, I am worried that he is being played by little miss…"

Sonny cut her off, "Carly, I don't have time for this right now. You need to get past this jealousy that you have over Elizabeth."

Her jaw dropped, "You think I am jealous."

"It's obvious, you can't even be in the same room with her. You have been like that with all his girlfriends but with Elizabeth it is the worst, maybe because you know deep down that this is it."

Carly shook her head, "She has you in her spell, she lets everyone think that she is an angel."

"CARLY! Stop it! Get over it. This conversation is over. Leave Jason and Elizabeth alone… before you push him away and lose him."

"Fine then, why the rush, why do they have to get married in two weeks?"

"I don't know, it is none of my business Carly! Ask Jason, but be careful Carly. I'm not talking about this anymore."

Carly turned and mumbled something on her way out, he thought it was something about stopping the wedding but he could not be sure. Sonny picked up the phone and called Jason. His voicemail picked up.

"Jase, I just had a visit from Carly, be prepared for her meddling." He hung the phone up, shook his head and went back to his work.


	55. Chapter 55

Chapter 55

A few days later Jason was sitting in the office going through invoices with Sonny. Business was finally returning to normal after the incidents.

"Have Milo cover the next shipment, when is it, tonight?" Sonny asked.

Jason nodded.

"Good, I want him to start moving up and taking on more responsibility. We need more dependable men for when you are not available… not to mention you will be away for a while for your honeymoon."

Jason leaned back in his chair, "That would be good, I'd like to step back a little and have some of the younger guys handle more of the everyday tasks."

Sonny's eyes widened, "Are you saying that you want to separate yourself from the business or just trying to have more time for your family."

"Sonny, I know that there is no separation for me. It can never happen. I am stuck for life. The minute I try to withdraw, I have shown my weakness and I would have a bulls-eye on my back. I made my decision years ago to be a part of this business. Whether it is still the right decision for me… I cannot change it. I may be a different person now but I still have the same enemies and they will always be there." Jason said with a sigh.

"Are you saying that you regret getting into the business?" Sonny asked.

Jason shook his head. "Not at all. At the time it was the right decision for me, it felt right. I don't know where I would be if it weren't for you, but I can tell you that I would most likely still be lost like I was after the accident. I owe you a lot Sonny. However, my life has changed so much in the last year… my priorities."

"I know that and I am glad that you have done all that you have for me and my family. You have protected us with your life and now you have your own to protect. We just need to find someone as dependable and hopefully close to as good as you to fill in your shoes in some areas."

Jason nodded, "Thank you for understanding."

"Hey, I have never seen you as happy as you are now… it makes me happy to see you this way. I am glad that you have finally gotten what you deserved."

Jason was about to speak again when there was a knock on the door. Max opened it and peeked his head in. "Boss, Luke Spencer is here to see you."

"Good, send him in." Sonny said.

Jason stood from his seat and moved to the side of the room as Luke entered the office. Sonny motioned for Luke to sit in the chair Jason had just been sitting in.

"Looking for me Corinthos?" Luke asked without looking at or acknowledging Jason.

Sonny nodded, "What are you doing going down to Miami Luke. Do you want to get yourself killed? You should have come to me."

"Look Sonny, I need to find out what was going on with my boy. What would you do if your son was gone and you had questions as to why… would you take the word of the cops or would you turn over every stone to find out what happened and what led to it."

Sonny just nodded and waited for Luke to continue.

"I had to at least try to get information. They, of course, gave me none. They pretty much threatened me to stop digging into it. I just want to know what happened with my boy."

"Look Luke, we have been friends for a long time. I need to tell you that these people are violent, they put Anthony Zacharra to shame. I run my business with a conscience. In doing that I do not go after families or innocent lives. They do not share the same beliefs as me. Their first impulse is to kill, I wouldn't be surprised if they set Lucky up. I don't know the ins and out of the investigation of Lucky's involvement with them but from what I hear he was in deep."

Sonny sighed and continued, "We are friends Luke, I trust you and your judgment. I just wish you would have come to me first… and you took Alexis with you. I talked to her this morning when you got back. I don't want Kristina put in anymore danger then she is already in, as I am sure you feel the same about Lulu."

Luke began to feel like a child being punished. His voice got stiff, "Well Sonny, I am aware of my actions." He stood from his chair. "If you have or get any information all I ask is that you relay it to me." Luke looked at Jason who was listening to the conversation closely. "How about you Morgan, got anything for me?"

Jason shook his head, "Nope."

Luke half smiled, "Didn't think so. I'll be seeing you around." He said to them both as he walked out of the office.

"That was… strange." Sonny said.

"There is more there then he is saying. The way he looked at me." Jason said.

Sonny nodded his head, "Yea, we need to keep an eye on him. I don't know if he found out more down there or if he just is bitter about you and Elizabeth."

"My hunch is both." Jason shrugged.

"So Max tried to get a meeting with Skye… it turns out that she has left town… indefinitely."

"Is that so? Where did she go?" Jason asked.

"Not sure but we need to find out who is managing the properties while she is gone, or if ownership has changed hands." Sonny said.

"I think we would know if she sold it. I'll look into it." Jason said looking at his watch. "I have to run, Elizabeth needs me to pick up the boys, she has dress stuff or something for the wedding after work."

---------

Thirty minutes later Jason was at Audrey's house picking up the boys.

"Spinelli will be contacting you with the information for the trip." Jason said. "He has been setting everything up for me, so if you have further questions about the itinerary he would be able to answer them."

Audrey smiled, "Wonderful. I must say, I can't wait."

"I'm glad. Can I ask who you are planning on taking with you?"

She smiled, "Actually, yea. I wanted to run it by you before I asked her to come. I wanted to ask Monica. I figured that it would be a nice chance to bond with Jake and Cameron."

Jason smiled, "That sounds nice. I am sure she would like that. It took Elizabeth some convincing to go away for so long without the boys. I had to fib a little to talk her into taking the time off work."

"Jason, she is going to be so happy."

"Daddy!" Cameron yelled as he ran into the room. He jumped into Jason's arms. "Daddy, can I have a dog?"

Jason laughed, "A dog?"

Cameron nodded his head. "Yea, Billy next door just got a little puppy. He is so much fun."

"I think that is something that you need to ask mommy. A puppy is a big responsibility buddy." Jason said.

"But I really, really want one." He begged.

Jason put him on the ground, "Well, let's get your jacket on and get you home. How about you, me and mommy talk about it tonight, ok?"

Cameron sighed, "Ok."


	56. Chapter 56

Chapter 56

"Mommy, can I have a puppy?" Cameron blurted out at dinner.

Elizabeth's eyes bulged out of their sockets. "What was that Cameron?"

"I want a puppy, like Billy. Daddy said that we need to ask you."

Elizabeth's gaze moved from Cameron to Jason. The gaze turned into a glare. "He said it was up to me huh?" She said in an annoyed tone.

"Yep." Cameron stated.

"How about we eat our dinner and talk about it after dinner Cameron, ok?"

Cameron sighed and went back to eating his dinner. The rest of the meal was quiet although Jason would disagree. He could feel Elizabeth yelling at him although he could not hear it, he felt it every time his eyes met hers. Once Cameron left the room and Elizabeth began cleaning the dishes Jason finally asked what he did wrong.

"You are going to make me the bad guy. Leave it up to me to say no!" she shot at him.

He held his hands up in defeat, "Look, I didn't know what to say. I didn't think it was a big deal. Would you rather I just said yes, that was my first impulse."

"Yes? No, I wouldn't rather you said yes. A puppy is a big responsibility. Walking it, feeding it… we aren't home enough to have to take care of a puppy."

Jason's hands dug into his pockets and his voice lowered to just over a whisper, "I didn't think about that."

"Well how about the fact that in seven months there is going to be a baby too. So I am supposed to just add a puppy to the list?"

He wasn't sure if she wanted him to answer. He really didn't think this was a big deal and actually thought it would be fun for Cameron to have a dog to play with outside in the summer. He stood listening to her slam the dishes around in the sink. He decided that she was overreacting. "Elizabeth, you are overreacting. I will tell him no, that will still make me the bad guy. Don't be mad at me." He walked up behind her, "I know that you are stressed with the wedding and the pregnancy… your hormones are probably…"

Before he could finish she pushed him away and turned bright red, "HORMONES! You might as well ask me if I have PMS! This is not hormones! A dog is a big responsibility, one that I would have to bear… something you didn't think about. What… I can walk a dog now… between feedings and baths and diapers and working and cooking and cleaning!"

Before he could respond she pushed past him and stomped out of the kitchen. He sighed, unsure of what to do. She was right, it was a burden that she would feel. He only though about the fun side, the excitement it would bring to Cameron. He heard her upstairs and decided to finish the dishes and let her cool off.

Jason picked Jake up from his playpen and sat on the couch. He let out a sigh as he watched Cameron put together a puzzle. "Hey Cam, come over here for a minute."

"Hold on, lemme…" He place the piece in his hand in its correct location, causing a smile to appear on Jason's face. "Ok." Cameron said and walked over to Jason and Jake on the couch.

Jason pulled him onto his lap. "Listen Cameron, I was thinking about the dog. How about we make a deal."

Cameron nodded his head.

"Ok, when Jake is a little older and you are both able to help mommy walk and feed the dog then you can get one."

Cameron shrugged and sighed, "I can't have one now?"

Jason shook his head, "Not yet buddy."

"When is Jake going to be big enough to help?" he asked as he looked at Jakes small form.

Jason smiled, "That is a good question, I don't know. When you think Jake is big enough to walk a dog how about you ask me again?'

"Ok, deal."

For the next few hours Jason went about his evening as it was any other night. Elizabeth reappeared but did not speak to him. They played with the boys and Jason would try to catch her eyes but she would not meet his stare.

"Ok Cam, time for bed." Elizabeth said standing from the floor. She bent over and picked up Jake. Jason stood from the couch but before he could say anything his cell phone rang.

"I'll take care of the boys." Elizabeth mumbled. "You get that."

She quickly ushered Cameron up the steps. When she got to Cameron's room she sighed, "Cam, tomorrow you are going to help me clean this room. You need to start cleaning up your toys when you are done playing with them."

"Ok." Cameron murmured.

Once the boys were in bed Elizabeth walked in their bedroom to find Jason sitting on the bench at the end of the bed. He was hunched over with his elbow resting on his knee and his forehead resting in his hand. She knew that she was hard on him and definitely overreacted… maybe he was even right about the hormones, but she was trying to make a point. The next few months were going to be hectic and adding a puppy to that would not be good. He should have realized that instead of just jumping on the idea. Sure he did have the thought to ask her before saying yes but he should have known the answer without having to.

Elizabeth walked past Jason and pulled a tank top and shorts from her dresser. Jason was now aware that she was in the room and had lifted his head. He followed her movements, watching her change in silence, walk in the bathroom to wash up and brush her teeth, finally taking a seat next to him on the bench.

She sucked in a deep breath, "Ok, my point earlier is that you should have known what the burden of a puppy is and how it would effect us, especially with the baby coming."

Jason nodded but stayed silent. Elizabeth picked up his hand and sandwiched it between her much smaller ones, her eyes caught his apologetic azure ones.

"I know that you are not accustomed to the whole family thing and that you are new to it. For that reason I am sorry for freaking out on you… and I did overreact, probably partially because of my hormones."

"I'm sorry." Jason whispered.

"Jason, don't apologize. We are both adjusting to all of these changes, this is just part of the adjustment."

"Well, I'm still sorry." He said.

She rolled her eyes and stood from the bench. He pulled her back down to sit next to him. "There is more." He said.

She looked at him confused. "What do you mean?"

"Umm, I have to go out of town for a couple days." He instantly saw the sadness in her eyes. "I have been putting it off and trying to get out of it but I cannot avoid it anymore."

"When?" she asked.

"Tomorrow." He whispered regretfully.

"Can you tell me where?" she asked.

He looked at her and nodded, "I just have to go down to the island and take care of a few things."

"You said this was just for a few days?" she asked as she stood from the bench.

"Yeah."

"And you have to leave tomorrow morning?"

"Yeah."

"Then we need to get started."

He looked at her unsure of what she meant. "Started?" he asked.

"Well we have to have makeup sex then we have to have goodbye sex… and I need to get some sleep tonight so…" she tugged on his arm and he stood, wrapping his arm around her waist. "…so we…" she kissed his neck "…need to get…" she kissed his chin "…star…"

He cut her off before she could finish and kissed her.

---------

Elizabeth woke up the next morning and found Jason sitting on the side of the bed. He was trailing his fingertips up and down her arm.

"Good morning beautiful."

"Good morning handsome."

"Cameron is downstairs watching cartoons. I told him I would be gone for a couple days and to watch out for his mommy… Jake is still sleeping… I have to go." He sighed.

"Ohhhhhh." She whined as she stretched her arms over her head, her naked breasts appearing from beneath the sheets.

He groaned "If I wasn't already late…" he bent his head and kissed her, "God, I don't want to go." He whispered against her lips.

She smiled and pushed him away, "Go before I handcuff you to the bed and keep you here."

His eyebrows raised, "Maybe when I get back." She instantly blushed at the thought. He turned toward the door, "I love you."

"I love you too. Hurry home."


	57. Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Elizabeth laid in bed for twenty minutes staring at the door. Jason was only going to be gone for a few days and he had only just left but she felt so alone, sad, worried, lonely… scared. This was the first time he had gone away overnight more less three days. She finally got out of bed and decided she needed to keep herself busy before she drove herself crazy.

Over the next couple days she cleaned every inch of her house and bought every grocery she could possibly need. The first night she had Audrey and Monica over for dinner and the second night she had Spinelli over to spend time with the boys. Jason called her in the mornings and before she went to be both nights.

By the third night Jason was still not home. Elizabeth had fed the boys and played with them all evening. When she spoke to Jason this morning he was optimistic that he would be home before the next morning sometime but was not sure when. He said that he would get home as soon as he could.

Elizabeth put both boys to bed and went downstairs. She looked out the window and saw Max standing on the porch. Jason had made sure that Max would be her main guard while he was away. He also had an addition guard sitting in the driveway. He did not want to take any chances.

She opened the door, instantly shivering at the cold air hitting her bare feet. "Max, do you want a coffee or anything? You can come in and get warm."

"No thanks, I am quite warm."

"I don't believe you but I will not force you. If I happen to make a pot of coffee how do you take yours?"

"Don't worry about me." Max insisted.

Elizabeth shook her head, "Well I am going to make it like it or not and if I do not make it how you like it then it will go to waste."

Max smiled at her persistence, "Black with one Equal."

Elizabeth smiled, "A nutra-sweet guy. Hmmm… I would have taken you for a sugar guy." She shut the door leaving him wondering if she was making fun of him or just trying to be friendly.

Ten minutes later Elizabeth handed him a steaming cup of coffee in a thermal mug. Max took a sip, "It's good, thanks Ms. Webber."

"Luckily I have an in with a coffee dealer." She said with a laugh. "… and enough of this Ms. Webber stuff. My mom is not here, I am Liz, or Elizabeth. I don't care which one."

Max nodded.

"You haven't heard from Jason have you? Do you know if he is on his way home?"

Max shook his head, "Sorry, I have not talked to him since this morning."

Elizabeth chuckled, "Me neither." She sighed, "Well, I am going to head to bed. Please, let me know if you ever want a cup of coffee or something to eat. You are out here to protect me, the least I could do is keep you warm and nourished."

"Yes ma'am."

"Ma'am now huh?" Elizabeth said as she smiled and closed the door. She thought about what a nice guy Max was and wondered if there were any single women she knew that could use a nice guy like him. He actually seemed to have a bit of chemistry with Diane, although she seemed too independent. She shrugged and decided to keep on the lookout for a nice girl for him, everyone deserves to be in love.

She climbed into her cold bed and looked over to Jason's side. _"Tomorrow, I will see him tomorrow"_ She told herself squeezing her eyes closed. A few minutes later he body began to relax a little but she was brought back to reality when she heard crying. Jumping out of bed she followed the cry into Cameron's room. "Cam baby, what's wrong sweetie?"

"Mommy, I feel yucky." Cameron said.

Elizabeth placed her cheek against his forehead to feel if he was warm, which he was. "Oh baby, you have a fever. Are you cold?" he nodded. "Does anything hurt or ache?"

Cameron nodded.

"Let's get you some medicine." She said and picked him up from the bed. She carried him to the bathroom and gave him something for his fever.

On her way back to his room he popped his head up, "Can I sleep with you mommy?"

She did not answer him just took him to her room. She laid down with him at her side and rubbed his back till he fell back to sleep. She followed short after but not for long. Elizabeth was woken up so many times she lost count. First Cameron was crying then whining, then crying again, then he was uncomfortable so he kept shifting, then he was too hot, then too cold.

---------

Jason's plane landed in Port Charles around 2 am. The entire flight home all he could think about was getting home to Elizabeth and the boys. He rushed to his car and finally pulled up to the house around 3.

---------

Elizabeth had finally reached her breaking point. She knew that it was not Cameron's fault that he was sick and she kept reminding herself of this as she got kicked in the leg. Sitting up in bed she scooted back so she could sit against the headboard. Her body was exhausted as were her emotions. Cameron was beginning to fall back to sleep after his most recent bout of tears when she, herself, felt tears running down her face. She turned to look at the clock, 3:05 it read. Sighing she closed her eyes, forcing more tears to fall. When she opened her eyes again Jason was standing in the doorway.

At first she thought she imagined him there. She looked away and wiped the tears from her cheeks and eyes. When she looked back he was more visible and walking toward her. "Oh my god, I'm not imagining you!" She cried.

He smiled and sat beside her on the bed, "No… god I missed you." He cupped her cheek with his hand. "What's wrong?"

She hooked her hand behind his neck and pulled him down for a crushing kiss. "Nothing now… well Cameron is sick."

Jason looked over Cameron's sleeping form. "What is wrong with him?" He asked.

She shook her head, "I don't know. He only has a fever, no sore throat or stomach ache. He's been awake most of the night."

Jason ran his fingers through Cameron's curly hair. "He does feel warm." Jason stood and bent to pick Cameron up. Elizabeth grabbed his arm and shook her head.

"He wanted to sleep in here and he is sick. We should leave him." Jason looked at the boy curled up into Elizabeth's side. Jason sighed and disappeared into the bathroom. A short time later he re-emerged in a pair of sweat pants and wet hair. A few water drops fell from his hair and trailed down his chest.

Elizabeth's eyes narrowed as her eyes trailed up and down his body. She wanted his body over hers, the feeling of his weight on top of her. She sighed as he laid on the bed beside her. He tugged Cameron off Elizabeth so she could slide her body down the bed and lay down. Cameron rolled onto his side between Jason and Elizabeth, his head falling between the pillows. Jason and Elizabeth laid on their sides gazing into each others eyes.

"I missed you." Elizabeth whispered as she took his hand and linked her fingers through his. His thumb trailed over hers, he kissed her knuckles.

"I missed you too." He smiled, "Of all the nights for Cam to be sick." He closed his eyes and sighed, releasing her hand and rolling out of the bed. He stood and walked over to her side of the bed. He kneeled on the floor and she rolled over to her side to face him. He brushed her hair from the side of her face and neck then trailed his hand over her shoulder, down her arm and rested it on her side.

He could hear her breathing quicken as he leaned in and kissed her. His hand at her side squeezed as his tongue pushed past her lips. She brought her hands up and placed them on the sides of his head, holding his lips to hers. His hand moved from her side to her stomach which was still flat but held their growing baby. He trailed wet, hungry, open mouth kisses down her neck to her shoulder then her arms then her side, finally stopping at her stomach. He pushed her shirt up slightly to expose her stomach. His fingers teased the soft skin of her belly causing her to shiver under his touch. He peppered kisses around her stomach whispering "I love you". She wasn't sure if he was talking to her or the baby and it didn't matter, she knew he loved them both.

Her hand rubbed and squeezed his back while his lips explored her belly then moved back to her lips. His free hand that was balancing him against the side of the bed moved to rest above her head while his other moved up her body to tease her nipple.

Her breathing was quickening as she finally formed words, "Jas-Jason… Cameron, we can't." He sighed into her mouth and moved his hand around her back and pulled her closer to the edge of the bed, closer to him.

He pulled back from the kiss and whispered, "I don't want to stop." He looked over her body at Cameron then up to the ceiling and sucked in a deep breath. He stood from the floor and saw that he was as aroused as she was.

"Sorry." She apologized, nibbling on her bottom lip that was swollen from their kisses. Looking down at her, the sight of her laying in the bed, breathing heavy drove him over the edge. He bent down and kissed her. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her from the bed. His lips never separated from hers as his tongue explored her now familiar mouth. He would never tire of kissing her but tonight he needed more and he could tell that she wanted more.

Her legs wrapped around his hips and he carried her into the master bathroom, gently kicking the door shut. The moment it clicked shut he turned and pressed her against the door. Elizabeth squeezed her thighs together, pressing her center against his erection, forcing him to moan. "Shhhh." She said repeating the move.

His head pulled back so he could look at her and whispered, "Keep doing that and I won't be able to…" before he could finish she did it again.

With a devilish smile she unwrapped her legs from her hips and finally brought her feet to the floor. Her hands quickly went to the tie on his sweatpants and she quickly pushed them down. He stepped out of them and pulled her pants and panties down. "We have to be quick, I don't want Cameron to wake up." She whispered.

"I don't think quick will be a problem." He joked. He kneeled and she lifted her foot off the floor so he could remove the pants. Before she knew what he was doing she felt his tongue on her sensitive bud. The feeling made her instantly go weak. He grabbed her hips and held her body against the door as he nipped, sucked and his tongue teased till she came. She grabbed a handful of his hair and bit her lip to keep from moaning loud.

Before she could recover he stood, lifted one of her legs to his hip and entered her. She wrapped her other leg around his hip and wrapped her hands around his large biceps. His pace was quick and hard and their eyes never left each other. Her hips were lifting, meeting him with each thrust till he felt her tightening and her hand squeezing his arm. He quickened his pace yet more and caught her moan with his mouth as he too let out a moan as he came.

Her head moved to his shoulder as he held her against the door till her breathing slowed and she had the strength to lower her legs to the floor. Quickly slipping back into their clothes they opened the bathroom door to find Cameron in the same position.

"See, plenty of time." He joked as he swept her in his arms and carried her back to the bed.

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Hey guys, I just wanted to take a minute and thank you all for the great feedback. It means so much that everyone likes my story so much.


	58. Chapter 58

Chapter 58

"Carly, you should not be lifting that." Jax said running over to her and taking the box from her hand. "What is in here anyway?" He asked curiously examining the box that had just been delivered to the house.

"It is Jason and Elizabeth's wedding present."

"Ok, and what is it?" he asked optimistically hoping that she had finally accepted Jason's marriage to Elizabeth.

She shrugged her shoulder, "A toaster oven."

"You bought them a toaster oven?" Jax asked annoyed.

She nodded her head and confidently said, "Yea."

"Why?"

"For their wedding, duh." She said.

"Carly, your best friend is getting married and you bought him a cheap appliance for a present? What is going on here?" Jax crossed his arms on his chest and leaned against the desk awaiting an answer.

"I just figure why get something fancy and extravagant. First Elizabeth is not the fancy and extravagant kind of girl, she is a beer and bar nuts kind of girl, I wouldn't want to embarrass her with some designer vase that she cannot even pronounce the name of. When I was at her house last I saw that she did not have a toaster oven so I figured I would get that. Plus, why spend a lot of money when I don't think this marriage will last… even if it does happen she will leave him eventually."

"That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard." Jax said.

Carly shook her head, "Of course you wouldn't understand, you, like the rest of Port Charles, have Elizabeth on this angelic pedestal. She has everyone fooled."

"Funny I did not realize in all my years that I was such a bad judge of character. One would wonder how I did so well in business. Although everyone warned me about you before we got together and I did not listen."

Her head turned toward him and her eyes narrowed, "What?"

"I'm saying that not everyone supported me and you, just like not everyone, including you, support Jason and Liz. We made it, I think they can too. She is a stronger girl then everyone thinks she is."

"Well Jax, I was not aware you were are charter member of the Elizabeth Webber fan club. You will see, in the end I will be proven right."

Jax shook his head, "I wish you would put half the energy that you put into Jason and Sonny's life and relationships into our relationship."

"Don't say that to me." She pointed at her stomach, "What exactly would this be?"

Jax shook his head, "A baby is not a relationship. You spend all of your time judging and meddling in Jason and Sonny's love lives. Sure we made a baby but when is the last time you actually focused on us? Spending time with me and the boys… improving our relationship."

Carly laughed, "Are you getting jealous Jax? If we had a problem or issue then I would focus on it and try to fix it, but we don't."

"See, there is where you are wrong." Jax picked his coat up off the chair and walked to the front door. "I think we do have problems, something that a baby will not solve. Maybe if you sat down and thought about us instead of your ex-husband and best friend you would see it." Jax opened the door and walked out, slamming it shut in the process.

Carly jumped when the door slammed. She could not believe that he was being so jealous of Jason and Sonny. They did not have any problems, things were going so good. She was finally pregnant, things could not have been more perfect. _'He'll get over it.'_ She thought as she looked at the box holding the tacky gift and deviously smiled.

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Elizabeth woke up and her entire body ached. She stretched in an attempt to loosen her muscles but it did not work. Cameron had kept her up most of the night. It seemed like every time she would fall asleep he would kick her, cry or whine. Jason had offered to take him in the other room and stay with him but she said it was ok… she lied.

She sat up in bed as Jason walked by with Jake in his arms. He stopped, "No, no, you go back to sleep. I'll take care of the boys this morning."

"How is Cam feeling?" she asked with as she yawned.

"His fever isn't as bad but he still has one. He is downstairs watching a Charlie movie."

Elizabeth looked over at the clock, "I can't sleep in. I have an appointment with the caterer and the florist is coming today so we can plan where everything is going and she is bringing the fire guy, that's what I call him, the guy that is renting us the fireplaces and heaters and I need to make a doctors appointment for Cam." She rambled off.

"Yea, well you take your time getting up. I have been gone and you have been doing everything yourself the last few days, then after last night you need a break. I will call the doctor for Cam and take him. I'll take Jake with me too so you can focus on the wedding stuff you need to do… and take a nap when you can."

Elizabeth smiled and hugged her knees, "I love you."

"I love you too."

Once the caterer, florist and fire man left Elizabeth laid on the couch to take a nap. She was having trouble keeping her eyes open. Jason had called and told her that Cameron was feeling better and the doctor said it was just a 24 hour bug that was almost out of his system. He took the boys to the penthouse for a while to do some work with Spinelli so she could take a nap. She closed her eyes and in that exact instant her phone rang. Letting out a sigh she decided she should get it and smiled when she looked at her caller ID.

"Oh Em, I miss you so much."

"Aww, I miss you too. How are the plans coming?"

"First how is your trip, are you having fun?"

"Yea, we spent a few days skiing in Switzerland and now we are in Greece. His island is beautiful. I just wish it were a little warmer… and I think Nicolas is missing Spencer."

Elizabeth laughed, "I would give anything to go to Greece, well Italy but its next to Greece. It could be twenty below and I'd be freaking ecstatic."

"Someday." Emily knowingly mumbled. "So the wedding?"

Elizabeth went through everything she had done and still had to get done. "I didn't think it would be so much work… but it is only a week away. It will be here before I know it."

"You sound exhausted Liz. You need to rest."

"Actually I had just laid down when you called."

"Oh my god Liz, I'm sorry. You need your sleep. Has Jason been helping with everything?"

"As much as he can. He took the boys today so I could get stuff done and lay down for a bit. Cameron was sick all night last night and before that Jason was gone for a few days so I'm just drained."

"How is the morning sickness?" Emily asked.

"Not too bad the last week, hopefully it won't come back."

"Well don't worry about anything else till I get back. Push off anything else for a few days, I will help you with it. Relax in the meantime. Promise me you will try to Liz? I know you try to do everything yourself but you are pregnant and need to take time for yourself."

Elizabeth smiled, "I know… I will try."

"Well lets start by you getting some rest now. I will let you go, it is dinner time here and Nicolas is waiting for me. I love you Liz."

"I love you too Em, have fun." Elizabeth said hanging up her phone. She pulled the afghan up and closed her eyes, falling asleep instantly.


	59. Chapter 59

Chapter 59

"Elizabeth, what can I do to help you?" Jason said rubbing her shoulders while she sat at the kitchen table going through the folder containing the paperwork for the wedding.

She sighed, "Nothing… I think everything is good. Emily is on her way over with the seamstress for a finally fitting for our dresses… so you actually should get outta here so you don't see my dress."

The last week had been crazy. Jason had helped where he could but Elizabeth knew that he was not comfortable making decisions about flowers and food. Emily had arrived home the day before. "Ummm, Emily, Robin and a few others from work want to take me out tonight for a sort of bachelorette party." She said with a shrug. "I'm sorry, they just threw it on me earlier today. Did you have plans? Should I find a babysitter?"

"No, I will be home. I guess I don't have to worry about you coming home drunk huh?" he joked.

She shook her head, "and I need one right now."

He squatted on the floor next to her chair and took her hands, "I'm sorry that you are so stressed with the wedding and the baby. I promise that the honeymoon will be perfect."

She smiled as he kissed her fingertips. "I can't wait and I don't even know where we are going. Speaking of which I don't know what to pack. Will it be warm or cold?"

Jason laughed. He found himself laughing and smiling a lot since he and Elizabeth had gotten together, completely out of his 'stone cold' character. "Sneaky, sneaky. How about you pack a little of each and if you run out we can buy you more clothes when we are there."

Elizabeth groaned, "Maybe I won't pack anything." She said and stuck her tongue out at him.

"Don't, don't do that." He teased. "Emily is coming over and you are giving me ideas." His hands released hers and moved to her knees, gently rubbing them. "So, we need to talk about something else before we leave."

"What's that?" she asked as she placed her hands on his arms and rubbed them.

"Huh?"

She laughed, "What else do we need to talk about?"

He stood and pulled a business card from his pocket, handing it to her. She studied it and looked at him with confusion. "Who is this?"

"Our contractor, I want them to start while we are gone so they can get the most inconvenient things done while we aren't in the house… so we need to figure out what we want and where." Jason stood and walked over to the refrigerator to grab a bottle of water. He held it up to her and she nodded so he grabbed her one as well. He walked back to the table and sat. "I know you have a lot on your plate but just give me an idea or list of what you want and I will take care of the rest."

She sucked in a deep breath and released it. Tapping her nails on the table she stared at the empty wall on the far side of the kitchen deep in thought. After a few minutes she had decided, "Ok, you need an office. We need another bedroom for a nursery and I was thinking a playroom on the first floor. What do you think?"

He leaned back in his chair and stared at her for a minute, "I was thinking two more bedrooms, you never know if we decide to have another baby or if not we could always use a guest room."

"Another kid huh, wow. You want me to be pregnant forever don't you?"

"No, but you never know so better to be prepared." He said with a wink. "Then an office and playroom here on the first floor. I was thinking a big sunroom off the back of the house."

"Oh, I like that, with a lot of light." She added with a smile.

He nodded, "I want to upgrade the security system and how do you feel about a pool?"

"I like it but it worries me with the kids." She said.

"I'd have them put a fence with a gate that locks up around it."

She nodded, "I like that. I guess that's about it, anything else is just more to clean." She said with a chuckle.

"If it is the cleaning we can hire a maid Elizabeth."

She shook her head, "No, no. No one can clean my house as good as me. I would not be happy with a maid."

"I understand, you know I don't like the idea of a stranger cleaning the house anyway. I'll meet with him while you and Em are doing your stuff this afternoon." He stood from the table and put his hand out to her. "Come here."

She took his hand and let him pull her into his arms. "I can't believe we are getting married in three days."

"I know Mrs. Morgan." He said pressing a kiss on the top of her head.

She smiled, "I love the sound of that, love you Mr. Morgan."

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Elizabeth closed the door as the seamstress said goodbye and left the house. "Thank god everything fits good. I was so stressed that she would show up with the dress and it not fit me." She said and walked over to the couch plopping down on it.

"I know it is stressful when you have no time for errors. Mine is a little long still but I will just get a pair of higher heels." Emily said.

"What time are we meeting up with everyone?"

"Eight at Metrocourt. I figure better there then Jakes, easier for you to get away without drinking."

Elizabeth patted her belly, "Yeah but hopefully we don't run into Carly." Elizabeth sighed and was silent for a few minutes, "So are you going to hint where Jason is taking me?"

Emily batted her eyes, "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, you know exactly what I am talking about. Are we going to the island? We are aren't we?"

Emily smiled, "Liz, I am not telling, Jason would kill me. Besides I think the surprise will be the best part."

Elizabeth sighed, "You are no fun. I'm just going to pack everything I own."

Emily laughed and shook her head, "You are so stubborn, just pack a little of everything and you will be prepared. You can always buy more when you get there."

Elizabeth grunted, "God, that is the same thing Jason said." She sighed, "I'm going to miss the boys. I've never been away from them for a few days more less a week before."

"Don't worry, I don't think you will be thinking of the boys when you get there… at least not for the first night." She laughed and Elizabeth blushed. "Eww, that's my brother." Emily made a gagging noise.

"Stop, how do you think this happened." Elizabeth pointed at her stomach.

"I'll stop every day and send you picture messages of them and you can call a hundred times a day, Audrey won't mind."

Elizabeth sighed, "I know."

A few hours later Emily and Elizabeth arrived at the Metrocourt. They spotted Robin, Laney and Kelly sitting at a table with a bottle of tequila. The women immediately waved them over and Robin poured them all a shot.

"Robin I haven't eaten yet." Elizabeth said as she sat at the table.

Robin put a shot glass of tequila in front of them each. "Since when does that stop you Liz? This is your bachelorette party, now drink."

Emily looked at Elizabeth and smiled. Kelly reached over and took Elizabeth's shot. "I'll do yours Liz, I don't want you getting sick if you haven't eaten yet."

Robin shot Kelly a dirty look, "Hey, it's her bachelorette party, Kelly, that's the point."

"Ok, actually, not only am I a sex addict but I am also an alcoholic." Kelly said sarcastically.

"Shhh, listen ladies. Since this is my bachelorette party, I'd like to make the first toast." Elizabeth said picking up the shot Kelly, her ob-gyn, had taken from her. She raised it, "To love… friends… tequila… getting drunk off tequila… and…" she looked around the table, winked and placed her finger to her lips and leaned forward, "and… shhh… to getting knocked up." She slammed the shot glass back on the table in front of Kelly.

All of the women at the table were speechless. Elizabeth was laughing until she notice that they were all looking at something behind her. She turned around and found Carly standing there red faced with her hands on her hips. How long had she been standing here. From the look on Carly's face she had obviously heard Elizabeth's news. Elizabeth leaned forward and tapped her forehead on the table whispering, "I am so stupid."


	60. Chapter 60

Chapter 60

"Ok… that was… weird." Robin said as she downed her shot.

"It's not like her to just walk away. Maybe she didn't hear me." Elizabeth said with hope in her voice.

"Umm, did you see her face Liz, she heard you." Kelly added.

"I just, I can't believe she didn't freak out and get all Carly on me." Elizabeth said shaking her head.

Lainey raised her shot glass, "My turn for a toast. Forget about Carly. To Elizabeth and Jason, may they be happy and have lots of sssssex." The women all laughed as they drank their shot and Elizabeth drank the glass of water in front of her.

Emily waved over the waiter who instantly appeared at the table. "We need another bottle of tequila and a few dinner menus." He ran to fetch the requested items and Emily noticed the look of fear on Elizabeth's face. "Don't worry Liz, what's done is done. Deal with it tomorrow, tonight is our night to not worry about wedding stuff or baby stuff."

Elizabeth nodded and let out a sigh. She decided to change the subject, "So Em, tell us about your honeymoon. We want to know everything." Elizabeth said with a devious smile.

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Jason got Jake and Cameron down for the night and went down to the Livingroom to do a little work. No sooner did he pick up the first piece of paper did he hear a pounding on the door. He jumped to answer it so the boys did not wake up to the sound. He saw that Carly was standing on the other side. Her face was bright red and she looked like she was about to ruin his night.

"What do you want Carly." He growled as he opened the door.

She immediately entered the house and dropped her purse on the couch. "Well, I just came from the Metrocourt. Looks like Elizabeth and her coven of witches are having a little night on the town."

He rubbed his hand over his face, "I already know this Carly. Will you please stop calling her names."

"I overheard something and I now understand. I finally get it." She said snidely.

"Carly, can you get to the point, I have work to do, what are you talking about?"

"You are marrying Elizabeth because you got her pregnant again." He stared at her in shock and opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off. "I completely understand Jason. She trapped you and you are just being the responsible man here. I respect you for that but come on Jase, you don't have to do this. Many parents share custody. Hell me and Sonny do it and it works out great. You can still get out of this wedding fiasco Jason. If you just…"

"That's enough Carly!" he yelled.

"Come on Jason, you don't honestly think I believe that you want to…"

He interrupted her again, "Carly, shut up! How do you know about the baby?"

She stood with her hands on her hips. "Elizabeth told her little bitch friends. I guess they were trying to get her to drink and she had to get them to stop."

Jason walked over beside the couch and pointed at it, "Carly sit down." He demanded.

She shook her head, "No thanks, I'm fine standing."

"SIT! You are going to sit and fucking listen to me. Carly, SIT!" He yelled causing her to jump. She relented and sat on the edge of the cushion.

He sucked in a deep breath. "This ends right here. After tonight I will never discuss my relationship with Elizabeth with you again. I know you are looking out for me but this is my life Carly. I am marrying Elizabeth. I am marrying her in three days and there is nothing… NOTHING that you can do or say that will change that."

She opened her mouth to speak but he put his hand up motioning for her to stop. "Shut up, I'm not finished." He said. "This is none of your business but I am going to tell you anyway because I know that you will not give up if I don't tell you. For the record, I proposed to Elizabeth before we found out that she was pregnant. We only found out a couple days before you told us that you were pregnant. Baby or not I was and am marrying her."

Jason walked over and sat in the chair. "Carly, I understand you. Of all the people in this town I am probably the only person that understands how and why you do the things that you do. Believe me when I say that I do love you for it. BUT… this part of my life is off limits to you now. You have proven that you cannot accept that I am happy and the choices I have made. For the record Elizabeth could leave me in six months and I would NEVER change a thing. I cherish my time with her and I will take whatever I can get."

"Jase, I…"

"I'm not done yet! You are going to listen to me before you go running around town telling everyone that I am being tricked into getting married. I wanted to marry Elizabeth before she found out she was pregnant. I wanted to marry her before we got together after the ball. I wanted to marry her when Jake was born, before he was born, after our night together… I probably wanted to marry her before Sam and Courtney… all of it. Do you understand what I am saying Carly. This is something that I have always wanted. Maybe I never admitted it to myself or to her, but I did want it."

Carly's eyes began flooding with tears, he continued. "Her ring… I didn't tell her this but I bought it a long time ago, I had put it away, hoping that one day I would have the opportunity to give it to her. We are a family Carly… me, Elizabeth, Jake, Cameron and this baby inside of her, a family that I have always wanted and never allowed myself to have. I never thought I deserved them or to be happy like this. Elizabeth has made me realize that I do. I just… Carly… you need to understand that there is nothing… nothing you can do or say that is going to change this." He sighed, "And if you do try anything, you will not be welcome at the wedding or in this house ever again."

He stood from the chair and paced across the room waiting for her response. He turned and looked at her. She sat on the couch shocked as she wiped away her tears then recovered and stood. "Ok Jase."

He furrowed his brow, "Ok what?"

"Ok I will leave it alone. I will not bother you or Elizabeth anymore and I will not meddle in your relationship. I just… you need to know that I only meddle because I care about you."

"Carly, if you cared enough then you would see… I am happy."

She nodded her head, "I know Jase, I see that. I am just afraid that it wont last and that you will get hurt."

"I know that. It is a chance that I am willing to take. I have to because I believe in her and in our family."

"I just want you to be happy. I want you to have it all. Maybe I am jealous, I don't know why I am so persistent when it comes to her. Maybe it is because I am afraid that you won't need me anymore or listen to my rants or be Uncle Jason to the boys and the baby I have in me."

"Carly, you are part of my family, you, Sonny, the boys… you all are. Elizabeth and the boys are now too though."

Jason stood in silence as Carly sat on the couch staring at her hands. "Are we done?" He asked. She finally stood, nodded and walked over to him. She pulled him into a quick hug.

"I'll see you Saturday at the wedding." She said then left the house, much quieter then she was when she entered.

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This chapter was pretty short but I wanted it to be devoted to the Carly fall-out. I was going to go in a different direction but decided to go with the better Carly ending rather the Carly from hell ending.


	61. Chapter 61

Chapter 61

Elizabeth woke on Saturday morning feeling groggy. She had slept poorly throughout the night, mostly because Jason was not sleeping next to her. Jason had slept at the Penthouse so they would not see each other the morning of the wedding, a superstition Emily had told him about.

Luckily this morning was one of the few where the morning sickness was absent. She got out of bed and showered. Wrapped in her robe she went to check and see if the boys were awake yet since she had yet to hear them. She was looking forward to spending the day with the boys since they would be leaving tonight right after the wedding for the honeymoon.

Making her way downstairs she finally heard the sounds of the boys from in the kitchen. She rounded the corner and found Emily sitting at the table eating breakfast with the boys.

"Good morning." Emily said jumping up from the table and hugging her. "How do you feel today?"

"Anxious." Elizabeth said as she bent and gave her boys kisses on top of their heads.

"Today is going to be great. Sit down and eat breakfast."

Once she sat Elizabeth finally noticed the chaos outside her house. There were men setting up tables, chairs, flowers and fireplaces… so much stuff being brought in and out of the backyard. At the same time everything was being checked by the guards and the guards were monitoring every move of the men and women setting up the wedding.

"My gosh, look at all of that, its beautiful already." Elizabeth praised.

Emily nodded. "Oh, here is the plan. Go ahead and spend your morning with the boys. I am going to work with the coordinator. Don't worry about anything. The stylist will be here at 2."

Elizabeth laughed, "Yes mom. You are the best maid of honor ever Em."

"I know." She laughed. "I just want this day to be perfect for you. You and Jason have waited so long for this." Before Elizabeth could reply Emily stood and left the kitchen.

"So Cameron, what do you want to do?"

Cameron smiled, "Can we go to the park?"

"We sure can… it's a little cold though. Maybe we can go to Kelly's for lunch after and see Mike." Elizabeth suggested as she grabbed a towel to wipe Jake's face. "Let's go get dressed and get going."

For the rest of the morning Elizabeth spent quality time with her boys. They played in the park then went to Kelly's for lunch and a hot chocolate to warm up. They finally returned home at 1:00 to a house that looked nothing like theirs. The furniture was all rearranged and flowers were stacked everywhere waiting to be placed on display. When Elizabeth stepped into the backyard to see the progress she was amazed. There were flowers and candles everywhere. Beautiful stone fireplaces were set up along with tall heaters. She knew that it would look perfect once the sun went down… with the fireplaces, candles, soft white lights, and flowers. She spotted heaters on the ground that were being hidden, at that point she realized that the cold would not be an issue. As long as the sky stayed clear tonight everything would be perfect.

"Wow mommy, this is so cwazy."

"I know baby, it doesn't even look like our backyard does it?" she said patting his head.

"That's so silly, there's fireplaces out here."

Elizabeth laughed and a sleeping Jake shifted in her arms, "I know, we are having a party out here tonight after me and daddy get married." She took his hand and guided him back into the house. "The fireplaces will keep us all warm."

She came back in the house and found Spinelli and Emily in the Livingroom. Cameron instantly ran over and hugged them. "Aunt Em… Nelli!" He yelled.

"Camster… I am here to take you to your daddy, want to come with me so you can get ready for the wedding?"

Cameron nodded and jumped up and down. "So much for mommy now that Spinelli is here." Elizabeth joked. She kneeled down, "Cam, why don't you go get your coat back on."

He quickly obeyed.

"Spinelli, do you need help with the boys?" Emily asked. "I can run them over to the Penthouse with you if you need me to."

"Thank you for the offer dear sister of Stonecold but the Jackal is most proficient in taking care of the young wonders."

Emily nodded and Cameron returned with his coat on. Elizabeth got Jake into his coat, kissed his cheek and handed him to Spinelli. She bent down and kissed Cameron, "I'll see you in a few hours baby."

"Ok mommy." Cameron replied then ran to the door.

Spinelli handed Elizabeth a small bag and followed Cameron out the door.

Elizabeth turned to Emily, "What is this?"

Emily shrugged and got a giddy smile, "Open it!"

She reached into the bag and pulled out a small box and a card. Elizabeth started with the card. _'I can't wait till I see you in a few hours, when I can call you my wife. I saw these and I thought of you. I love you!'_

Elizabeth flipped open the box and gasped. It was a pair of earrings, a huge diamond with an even larger sapphire hanging from a thing piece of platinum.

"Oh my gosh, they are gorgeous!" Emily gushed.

Besides her engagement ring, Elizabeth had never owned a piece of expensive jewelry like the earrings. She stood staring at them as tears flooded her eyes. "T-they are… wow!" Elizabeth immediately grabbed her cell phone from the table and dialed Jason. When his voicemail picked up she simply left a message "I love you" and hung up her phone. She turned to Emily, "I don't think he understands the superstition, we can talk we just can't see each other."

"Maybe he is trying to build the suspense for when he finally sees you later." Emily joked. "Now go get in the shower, Brynn will be here soon to get started on your hair."

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"Daddy" Cameron said as he ran into the Penthouse, throwing his coat on the chair as he ran past it and into Jason's arms. Jason was still in his signature jeans and t-shirt.

"Hey buddy." Jason said as he bent and hugged Cameron. He held Cameron in a hug for a few extra seconds, thinking about how lucky he was as Spinelli removed Jake's coat and placed him in Jason's arms.

"Nelli, wanna play poll?" Cameron asked, pointing at the pool table.

"It's pool not poll young Cam, Spin would be honored to indulge in a fun past time with you."

Cameron looked at Spinelli confused about his answer which made Jason chuckle. When Spinelli started to make his way to the pool table Cameron realized that Spinelli said yes. Jason sat with Jake as he watched Cameron stabbing the felt on the table with the cue stick. Cameron laughed and giggled when he would finally hit the ball. "Daddy did you see that?"

"Good job Cam." Jason praised. He picked up his phone and listened to the voice mail. He knew that it was probably Elizabeth calling when she got her gift and it was. Jason smiled when he heard her short message then tossed his phone on the table and returned his attention to Cameron and Jake.

After a few minutes Jason walked over to the pool table and handed Jake to Spinelli. Jason lined up a shot and grabbed a chair for Cameron to stand on. Step by step he showed Cameron how to hold the pool stick and hit the cue ball into one of the color balls. He jumped on the chair each time he managed to make a connection then finally a ball that he hit fell into the pocket. Cameron jumped on the chair so hard that he lost his balance, falling into Jason's arms.

Jason enjoyed spending time with his boys, playing pool, chasing each other around the apartment… tickling Jake till he made that belly laugh that would always bring a smile to Jason's face. Finally Max arrived with a garment bag containing their suits for the night. Jason dressed himself then helped Cameron into his. Since a suit was not exactly ideal for Jake they dressed him in a little pair of black pants, a white onesie and little black booties.

Dressed in their suits, Jason, Jake and Cameron left the Penthouse and got in the limo to take them home for the wedding

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Elizabeth stood in front of the mirror adding the final touch to her outfit, her new earrings. Her hair was half up and half down but the with the size of the stones in the earrings they could not be lost in the curls hanging on her shoulders. She turned to Emily, who was already dressed and ready, and waved her hands over her body, "So?"

"So, you are beautiful Liz. You are going to take his breath away." Emily said. Elizabeth sucked in a deep breath, "Are you nervous?"

Elizabeth shook her head, "No… just anxious." She took Emily's hand. "Em, I feel it, I know I have done this before… too many times. I have never been so content, happy… god… in love. We finally found each other and held on… forever."


	62. Chapter 62

Chapter 62

Elizabeth made her way down the steps on shaky feet. The shakiness was not due to nerves, she was anxious. She could not wait to marry Jason. Emily led the way through the Livingroom and stopped at the back door. They heard the music beginning to play and Emily turned back to Elizabeth one last time, winked and headed out the door. Elizabeth had chosen to walk down the aisle herself. She had thought about asking Audrey to give her away but felt it was not anyone's place to give her away. She was giving herself away, giving herself to Jason.

The door was opened by the coordinator and Elizabeth stepped on the patio. There was a chill in the air but as soon as she began walking toward the crowd she could feel the warmth of the heaters and fireplaces. She gripped her small bouquet of deep red roses and walked around the corner. She stopped at the end of the row of chairs as soon as Jason was in her view.

Jason stood in the front with Sonny and Cameron. He watched as his sister, smiling from ear to ear, walked down the short aisle and took her place, turning to await Elizabeth. The guests stood and turned to see Elizabeth rounding the corner and stopping in the back. She stood and locked eyes with Jason who instantly felt butterflies. He was not one to feel nervousness or anxiety but seeing her made him feel every emotion, even the ones he always repressed.

Elizabeth stood, dressed in a cream colored, strapless dress that was covered in lace. There was a white satin sash around the waist and her hair was half up, half down, curls draping over her shoulder. Even from where he was standing he could see that she was wearing the earrings he had given her.

Elizabeth slowly began her walk down the short aisle. She took in the gorgeous view of Jason waiting for her. Instead of a tuxedo he wore a simple black suit with a black tie and white dress shirt. His eyes sparkled as they were locked on hers, watching her walk toward him. With all eyes of the guests on her nobody saw Jason's lips moving, silently telling her that she was beautiful.

Elizabeth was completely unaware of who was in attendance. As she made her way down the aisle she only saw Jason and he only saw her. When she finally reached him he reached for her hand and she handed Emily her flowers. The minister spoke:

_Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today to witness before family and friends the exchange of solemn vows between Jason and Elizabeth. _

_Marriage, is not by any, to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently, discreetly, advisedly and solemnly. Into this union these two persons present now come to be joined. If any person can show just cause why they may not be joined together, let them speak now or forever hold their peace._

_Marriage is the union of husband and wife in heart, body and mind. It is intended for their mutual joy, and for the help and comfort given on another in prosperity and adversity. But more importantly, it is a means through which a stable and loving environment may be attained._

_Through marriage, __Jason and Elizabeth __make a commitment together to face their disappointments, embrace their dreams, realize their hopes, and accept each other's failures. __Jason and Elizabeth __will promise one another to aspire to these ideals throughout their lives together, through mutual understanding, openness, and sensitivity to each other._

_This relationship stands for love, loyalty, honesty and trust, but most of all for friendship. Before they knew love, they were friends, and it was from this seed of friendship that is their destiny. Do not think that you can direct the course of love – for love, if it finds you worthy, shall direct you._

_Elizabeth:_

_Jason, I take you to be my lawfully wedded husband. Before these witnesses I vow to love you and care for you as long as we both shall live. I take you, with all your faults and strengths, as I offer myself to you with all my faults and strengths. I will help you when you need help, and turn to you when I need help. I choose you as the person with whom I will spend my life._

_Jason:_

_Elizabeth, I take you to be my lawfully wedded wife. Before these witnesses I vow to love you and care for you as long as we both shall live. I take you, with all your faults and strengths, as I offer myself to you with all my faults and strengths. I will help you when you need help, and turn to you when I need help. I choose you as the person with whom I will spend my life._

_What token of your love do you offer? Would you place the rings in my hand? _

May these rings be blessed as the symbol of this affectionate unity. These two lives are now joined in one unbroken circle. Wherever they go, may they always return to one another. May these two find in each other the love for which all men and women year. May they grow in understanding and in compassion. May the home which they establish together be such a place that many will find there a friend. May these rings on their fingers symbolize the touch of the spirit of love in their hearts. 

_Jason and Elizabeth place the rings on each others fingers._

_May you always share with each other the gifts of love, be one in heart and in mind, may you always create a home together that puts in your hearts, love, generosity and kindness. _

You have pronounced yourselves husband and wife but remember to always be each other's best friend.

What, therefore, God has joined together, let no man put asunder.

And so, by the power vested in me by the State of New York, I now pronounce you man and wife, and may your days together be good and long upon the earth.

You may now kiss the bride. 

Jason smiled, bending his head and his lips brushed against hers, kissing her ever so lightly, leaving her wanting more. Throughout the ceremony he had looked at her so intensely that it made her knees weak. The guests stood to congratulate them as Jason and Elizabeth hugged and kissed each one and slowly made their way toward the back of the crowd, toward the house.

Audrey held Jake and hugged Elizabeth and Jason, wishing them luck. One by one they greeted and were congratulated by their guests, Sonny then Emily then Monica then Jax then… Carly, who hugged and kissed Jason then cordially smiled at a relieved Elizabeth. Her biggest worry was that Carly would decide to speak and not hold her peace but she did and Elizabeth would forever be thankful that she did.

Cameron, who seemed unsure of exactly all of this meant, ran up to Elizabeth, "Mommy… you look bootyful."

Elizabeth smiled and bent down, kissing her son on the forehead, "Thank you Cam, and I think you look very handsome."

Elizabeth knew that Jason did not like crowds and he was handling it well. Soon they had made their way through each guest and before she knew it Jason was pulling her in the back door to an empty kitchen.

"You are absolutely beautiful. I love you so much, the words just don't…" before he could finish or she could reply his lips found hers. His arms wrapped around her waist as her hands moved to his face, holding him and the kiss. She sighed and he trailed kisses down her jaw line to her neck, stopping to pull her into him closer. He buried his head in her neck and stood holding her as they whispered their love to each other. Finally he pulled back and took her hand in his, grabbing the doorknob with the other. "I think we should go back outside Mrs. Morgan… before we ditch this party."

Elizabeth flashed a big smile, "Ok, lets go Mr. Morgan."

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Another short one but I wanted to post what I had so far.

Just a heads up, I do have plans, a lot more, but the wedding and reception will be ending this story... but don't worry i will be starting a sequal/continuation with the honeymoon, baby and everything else and post a link in this one. I should get that last chapter up tomorrow... hopefully!


	63. Chapter 63

Chapter 63

"I'm not going to give some sappy speech. Jason, brother, you are a man of honor and respect. Elizabeth you are the epitome of grace and courage. Your love for each other should be shown as an example for the rest of us… an example of what we all need to strive for ourselves and our own relationships. To Jason and Elizabeth, perfectly in love. Salud." Sonny wished them and raised his glass as did the other guests.

He motioned to Emily and sat. Emily stood and raised her glass, "I must brag that I think I am your biggest cheerleader. I have seen what the two of you have for so long, at first you fought it… maybe out of fear, or stubbornness, or maybe just plain ignorance. As Elizabeth recently said at my wedding, there is this unseen force that draw you together, it always has… in good times and bad, never deny that. Jason, everything Sonny said is true, you are honorable, respectful, selfless, a wonderful father and the best brother I could have ever asked for. Elizabeth, you are beauty, grace, a terrific mother and have been the best, most caring friend… and now sister, well sister-in-law… same thing. Jason and Elizabeth, words cannot express how grateful I am for everything you both have done for me and how you have both helped me through so many hard times in my life. I am thankful that you have both found a love so great in each other that the rest of us are jealous when you even look at each other. To the Morgans, we love you."

Emily raised her glass, sipped it then went over and hugged Jason and Elizabeth. Elizabeth sat and took in her surroundings. The guests all seemed to be enjoying themselves. The patio was beautiful. Fireplaces crackled and produced a wonderful glow, a cool breeze would blow and be quickly warmed by the towering heaters. Small white lights hung from above, each with small crystals dangling that reflected the light from the fireplace which made them sparkle like diamonds. It was perfect and romantic, exactly what Elizabeth wanted.

Jason squeezed her hand under the table and whispered in her ear. His breath on her ear gave her chills, something he noticed and repeated, enjoying her reaction. He continued whispering in her ear, he told her how beautiful she was, he thanked her for marrying him and he told her that he couldn't wait to get her alone. His hand moved from hers and rested on her thigh as the waiters served their meal. He smiled when he saw that it was chicken picante, the meal she had cooked for him.

Once they finished eating they talked to the guests for a short time before Jason took her hand and pulled her to the small area reserved for dancing. There was no disk jockey, just a simple string band. She wrapped one arm around his neck and rested the other on his chest. He snaked an arm around her waist and the other brushed up and down her back. She tugged at his neck and he bent to brush a light kiss on her lips then began to sway.

"Jason?" she whispered. He moved his eyes to meet hers. "Thank you for my earrings."

"You, my wife, are welcome." He said and planted a kiss on her forehead.

She smiled, "I like the sound of that. Thank you for this too."

"For what?"

"This, the perfect wedding." She answered.

He shook his head, "No, you did this. I should be thanking you."

"Well you paid for it." She laughed.

"Money is just paper, it does not even compare to you and how you make me feel. It was worth every penny to see you walk down that aisle. I cannot even put into words how I felt the moment I saw you." Jason's hands cupped her face and his lips moved over hers. The kiss was soft and full of emotion. He pressed his forehead against hers, "I love you so much."

"I love you too." She replied in a whisper. She opened her mouth to speak but lost her words when her eyes met his. Their sway continued as they were locked in their own moment, alone, just the two of them. For the next few minutes no one else existed. They didn't hear the random conversations going on around them nor did they hear Jake whining when his bottle dropped on the floor.

When they finally moved from the dance floor, Carly approached them.

"Elizabeth, can I talk to you for a minute?" Carly asked.

Jason sternly glanced at Carly which she brushed off when Elizabeth followed her to an area that would allow them privacy.

Elizabeth waited impatiently for Carly to speak and hound her again. Surprisingly the conversation was exactly the opposite. "Look Elizabeth, I don't like you and you don't like me. I know that we agree on that. But… we both love Jason. I do see that you love him. Anyway, what I am asking for is a truce. I'm not saying that I want to have friends or go shopping together or anything. I promise I will not instigate a fight with you if you promise to do the same."

Elizabeth's eyes widened, "Wow, Carly. How mature of you."

"Don't start Lizzie… agree?" she asked, extending her hand to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth stood for a minute before taking Carly's hand. "For the record, it's not that I don't like you… it is the meddling. As long as you don't meddle then we have a truce… for Jason's sake."

Carly rolled her eyes and turned to walk away but stopped and turned back toward Elizabeth. "By the way, congratulations on the baby."

Elizabeth stood stunned as she watched Carly walk away. Maybe things would get better between her and Carly but she knew that she needed to take Carly's promise with a grain of salt. She caught Jason's eyes on her from across the room. He was talking to Sonny but kept glancing her way to be sure her conversation with Carly did not turn into an argument. Dealing with Carly was worth it, she would even be nice to her if it made Jason happy.

A little over an hour later the guests began to depart the reception. Cameron kept rubbing his eyes and Jake was already sleeping when Audrey packed them up to leave. Elizabeth and Jason kissed them goodbye. Jason had pulled Audrey aside earlier and gone over the final details about the trip. Elizabeth was still unaware of Jason's plans which made him excited to surprise her.

Once Audrey left with the boys Jason held Elizabeth in the Livingroom while she cried. She promised him that she wanted to go away with him and that she would be ok when he offered to put off the trip.

Finally Emily and Nicholas were the last of the guests to leave. Once she shut the door, Elizabeth turned to Jason.

"So, husband, are you going to tell me where we are going now? I'd really like to be prepared… as far as packing is concerned."

Jason walked toward her shaking his head, "Nope, nice try though. You aren't going to know till we get there. You don't need to be prepared, we can buy whatever you need." He looked at his watch, "Actually we'd better get changed or we are going to be late. We have about twenty minutes to get on our way to the airport."

When he got close to her she backed away and pulled at the bottom of her dress to climb the steps. "Only twenty minutes huh?"

Quickly his arms swept under her knees and behind her back, he lifted her and carried her up the stairs to their bedroom. He placed her on the floor and tipped her head for her eyes to meet his, "You know, we may be in a rush now, but…" he kissed her nose, "We have a long flight… with just me and you."

Her face flushed and she chewed on her bottom lip. "Well if we are in a big rush, it would be a lot quicker if you help me get out of this dress. There are so many buttons down the back, it is agonizing for me to reach each one."

He reached and began working the buttons, there had to be at least twenty five of them Jason thought. "And it is even more agonizing for me…" he said as the dress dropped to the floor, "To see you…" he swallowed at the sight of her stripping off her bra and panties. "Jesus."

She swayed across the room naked. She opened some drawers and removed a few articles of clothing, choosing to take her time for the process. She pulled on a t-shirt and pair of cotton pants. Jason took note that she did not put anything on under them. "Are you going to get changed Mr. Morgan? I thought we were in a rush."

"How do you expect me to function when you are teasing me like that?"

Digging through her drawers again, she rolled her eyes and smiled, "I don't know what you are talking about."

She turned around and stumbled into him. She did not hear him come up behind her. He leaned in and kissed her but as soon as he tried to deepen the kiss she pushed him away. "Come on, we need to get moving if we are going to make it in time for this long flight you promised me."

Fifteen minutes later they were loading themselves and their bags into the limo. The drive to the airport was mostly silent. Elizabeth cuddled into his side and listened to the calming sound of his heartbeat. It was such a simple sound, everyone everywhere in the world had one yet his was different because it was hers.

She lifted her head and caught his eyes, "Thank you Jason."

He smiled, "And what are you thanking me for now?"

"Everything… this, us, but mostly…" she rested her head back on his side to hear his heartbeat again, "Thank you for saving me."

The end!

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Thank you all for the wonderful feedback throughout the story. It has motivated me so much. This was my first fic so thank you for being so great through it all! I love you guys too!

I tried adding a link here for the new story but it will not allow me to. I have created it and it is called _They went for it_.

I will try to get a few chapters posted shortly!


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